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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22365124">Nothing Like You</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/SomaC/pseuds/SomaC'>SomaC</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Steven Universe (Cartoon)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen, Pink Diamond Steven - Freeform, Time Travel, Time Travel Fix-It</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-01-22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-04-28 11:02:33</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Not Rated</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>131,102</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22365124</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/SomaC/pseuds/SomaC</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>“Huh? Are you hurt? Do you need help?” Steven asked confused as he searched the stranger for any cuts and bruises. He could try and heal them with his spit. As he searched for any injuries he finally noticed the gem that rested on the strangers stomach. A gem that he could recognize anywhere, a gem that he saw everyday, his own gem.</p>
<p>Epilogue is now up.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>623</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>1485</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Mission Mishap</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">


        <li>
            Inspired by

            <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22139770">Into the Universe</a> by <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/flynnaw00/pseuds/flynnaw00">flynnaw00</a>.
        </li>

    </ul><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Based off Into the Universe by flynnaw00 and @sutimetravel's Tumblr</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The first sign that told him something was wrong was the sinking feeling in his stomach; It was a horrible feeling. It reminded him of the time he had gotten sick on the teacups ride at Funland. Steven now desperately wished that he was on that ride because at least then he could jump off and end the horrible feeling of nausea that had taken residence in his stomach. Steven looked on in horror as a blinding light began to rapidly engulf his body. He willed his fingers to release the source of the light in a desperate attempt to save himself, but it was no use his fingers were unresponsive. Steven mentally berated himself for ever touching the artifact in the first place. This was supposed to be an easy mission; a well deserved break from all the work he had to do now that he was busy restructuring the Diamond Authority into something that wasn’t a horrible dictatorship. </p><p>Recently, Garnet had been sensing trouble and using her future vision had finally managed to track down the source of the disturbance to an ancient gem ruin located in a dessert. At first Steven had declined to go and investigate the ruins; he was confident that Garnet and the rest of the gems would be able to handle the situation on their own and he felt like he was needed more back on Homeworld, but after some coaxing from all three gems he had relented and agreed to go. He missed the simple missions and he missed spending time with the gems. He was also beginning to feel suffocated by the Diamonds back on Homeworld. Even though they no longer saw him as Pink Diamond they still continued to smother and dote on him. Steven thought it was somewhat sweet and a sign of how much progress they had made, but there was only so much he could take before he needed a break. He just wanted some time to relax and to be Steven; something which he hadn’t been able to do in a long time and though Steven would never admit it he missed being a kid. Nowadays he had to abide by Homeworld etiquette, even though the Diamonds had lost their supreme authority they still insisted on following thousand year old etiquette. The Diamonds were also adamant about him learning this etiquette because even though he loathed to admit it Steven was a Diamond and Diamonds had to present their best possible selves at all times. Steven generally saw these rules as bothersome and silly, but he willed himself to follow them because it made the Diamonds more willing to listen to him.</p><p>The ruins were nothing special, they were actually quite boring in comparison to previous ruins that Steven had seen. The ruins themselves were in the shape of a crumbling pyramid and the inside was made up of dozens of small square shaped rooms. Each room had winding sets of stairs cases that seemed to stretch on forever. Many of the stairs cases would lead to dead ends or were just extremely unstable. Some stairs cases would even glitch before disappearing completely only to reappear in a different location. In order to cover ground more quickly Steven had suggested they split up. The gems had disagreed at first, but after a dozen more dead ends they reluctantly agreed. Halfway through a staircase Steven realized that objects had begun to appear and disappear seemingly without any reason. At first he believed that there might be something in common with all the objects that would help solve the mystery of the ruins, but looking at the objects only served to confuse him more. Some objects seemed like they would go together like a book and a map, but then other objects like a sandwich or a raft would appear and leave him with more questions. What do a raft and a sandwich have in common? Perhaps the harmless nature and rather bland appearance of the ruins is what made Steven lower his guard. Usually he was much more careful about touching gem artifacts. He should have regrouped with Garnet and the others so they could decide on what to do with the artifact together. </p><p>When one of the staircases lead him to a door rather than a dead end Steven eagerly opened it and went inside. The room was small and square like the previous ones, but with one notable difference; this room lacked stairs which was a big relief to Steven’s aching feet. Being half gem made Steven’s endurance far greater than that of any humans so he wasn’t tired, but given that Steven had not originally planned on going on this mission he had failed to change out of his Homeworld outfit. This had caused no problems at first and because the ruins were located in the desert his outfit had actually helped keep him cool, but as he climbed more and more sets of stairs his feet had begun to feel pinched by his footwear. Steven missed the open feel that his red sandals had provided him; he was half tempted to just finish the mission barefoot but stopped himself from doing so when he saw a pedestal stand in the middle of the room. Floating barely above the stand was an object that just screamed ancient gem artifact. As Steven quickly closed the distance between himself and the artifact he noted that the artifact bore a striking resemblance to the ruins themselves. It was in the shape of a pyramid except at its peak there was another pyramid attached to it. As Steven went to grab the object he thought that it looked like a bowtie or like an hourglass. All thoughts on what the artifact resembled quickly vanished as he was left immobilized by the object. It was then that the nausea hit him. Only when the light from the artifact had reached his neck did Steven allow himself to panic. Had his muscles actually listened to him Steven would be frantically flailing about, but his muscles refused to budge and Steven was forced to watch himself become engulfed by its blinding light. Steven’s last thoughts before his vision was completely engulfed in white were of simpler times with the gems and of his home in Beach City.</p><hr/><p><br/>Steven was worried. Garnet had been on edge ever since she had destroyed the warp pad back at the galaxy warp. Steven didn’t quite understand why Garnet seemed so worried about Peridot, he had seen her beat gem monsters way bigger and scarier than her before. What made Peridot so different? Every time Steven attempted to ask Garnet these questions it became almost impossible to find her. It was as if she could tell when he wanted to ask these questions and purposefully avoided him. Steven also tried coaxing answers out of Pearl, but she would always just tell him that he wasn’t ready or that he was too young. Steven couldn’t wait until he was older because if what Pearl told him was true older people knew everything. Amethyst was the easiest gem to talk to, but when it came to the topic of Peridot it seemed that she only knew a little bit more than he did. If she did know more then it was clear that she wasn’t about to tell Steven anything. Amethyst would usually distract him with a fun game or a joke and he would eventually forget why he had visited her in the first place.</p><p>Steven let out a sigh before shaking his head. All this thinking was making him hungry and he was a growing boy so it was important that he ate so that he could grow big and strong like Garnet. Sadly, the gems were away on a mission so he had to make himself dinner. As he debated whether to have a peanut butter and jelly sandwich or mac and cheese a flash of light filled the beach house. Steven closed the fridge and quickly turned around to face the source of the blinding light. The gems were back! However, Steven quickly realized that it couldn’t be the gems since The light was coming from the living room and not the warp pad. He shielded his eyes with his hand and squinted in an attempt to see what was causing the light. Slowly the light began to dim until Steven could faintly make out a silhouette. It looked like a person. Steven slowly approached the glowing figure as it began its graceful descent from the ceiling to his living room. Half way through its descent the figure abruptly froze midair before unceremoniously falling right on top of the coffee table with enough force to break it in half. Steven winced. That looked like it hurt. </p><p>“Are you ok?!” Steven asked worriedly as he rushed to assist the magical stranger. He heard a muffled groan as the stranger struggled to get up off the floor. When Steven had finally managed to get the stranger standing  the first thing he noticed was their strange outfit. They looked like they were dressed as a fairy.</p><p>Steven gasped “Are you my fairy godmother!?” He asked excitedly. He had read about them in some of his books and he knew that they could grant you wishes.</p><p>“Oh no! This is bad!” The stranger exclaimed as he frantically took in his surroundings before resting his gaze onto Steven. “This is very bad!”</p><p>“Huh? Are you hurt? Do you need help?” Steven asked confused as he searched the stranger for any cuts and bruises. He could try and heal them with his spit. As he searched for any injuries he finally noticed the gem that rested on the strangers stomach. A gem that he could recognize anywhere, a gem that he saw everyday, his own gem.</p><p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Home Sweet Home</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Steven arrives home, but things are different.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>For what felt like an eternity Steven saw nothing but white. After a while the white that had engulfed his vision slowly began to dissipate. His vision was blurry and he could vaguely make out a figure below him. It was then that he realized that he was floating and it was also at that exact moment when his body was forcefully slammed onto the floor. Steven let out a groan when  he felt something break under the weight of his body. Steven head was buzzing and his vision was having trouble focusing. He was aware of someone helping him stand. He blinked several times, ignoring the muffled voice of his helper until his vision finally cleared up. The first thing that he noticed was his location. He was back home in beach city which brought him a huge sense of relief because it meant that the gem artifact that he had foolishly touched had not killed him. Steven let out a sigh of relief. Steven turned to thank the person who helped him up. It was then, to his complete shock and horror that Steven saw himself. A much,</span>
  <em>
    <span> much</span>
  </em>
  <span> younger version of himself that was looking up at him with poorly veiled curiosity. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh no! This is bad!” he exclaimed as his heart once again sank into his stomach. He was suddenly very much aware of his outfit. He mentally cursed himself. Why didn’t he change outfits before going on that stupid mission? Thankfully, he knew that the younger version of himself wouldn’t react negatively to his choice of clothing. He was also was fairly certain that Amethyst didn’t understand the significance of his outfit, but if  Pearl or Garnet saw him like this… The gems! Steven did a quick scan of the house and was extremely relieved when he didn’t see them. The Artifact! Steven was certain that the artifact was the cause of his current problem and upon realizing that he no longer held it Steven felt his panic flare up again.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“This is very bad!” he said as he searched the floor in hopes of finding his only ticket back home.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Huh? Are you hurt? Do you need help?” His younger self asked him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven took a deep breath and calmed himself. He knew that he shouldn’t act panicked around his younger self or he ran the risk scaring him. Steven opened his mouth to respond, but was cut off by his younger self.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Woah! You look just like me!” he exclaimed rather loudly. Steven winced. He had forgotten how energetic he used to be. When was the last time he had gotten that excited about anything? </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“That's because I am you. From the future.” he explained calmly as he lifted up one of the pieces of the coffee table and was relieved when he saw the gem artifact. It looked like it was still in one piece.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Wow! Really?!” his younger self excitedly asked. “Why are you dressed as a fairy?” he giggled as he tugged on the hem of his outfit.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven blushed as he gently removed younger Stevens fingers from his outfit. He knew that his outfit looked a bit strange, but to be confused for a fairy was embarrassing. He had originally started wearing the outfit because it was expected of him back when the Diamonds still thought of him as their beloved Pink, but he continued to keep wearing it after because it had made the Diamonds more willing to listen to him. He smoothed out his outfit and brushed off small pieces of wood that had got caught on it. He carefully picked up the artifact and stood back up. Soon he would be back home and he could pretend that this little mishap never happened. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Listen, Steven…” He began gently. It felt strange talking to himself  “It was...” Steven paused trying to figure out a good word to describe this weird situation without offending his younger self “interesting… meeting you, but I have to go back to my own time now.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Aww man!” past Steven pouted as he lightly kicked the ground in front of him looking extremely disappointed. “Can’t you stay a little bit longer? We didn’t even get to take a picture together.” Steven begged, his eyes beginning to water slightly. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven winced he suddenly felt guilty for all the times he had used his puppy dog eyes on the crystal gems. How was he supposed to say no to that face? “Sorry Steven but I should probably go before anyone else sees m-” Steven was abruptly cut off by the sound of the warp pad activating behind him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl are back!” his younger self yelled happily while running past him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven froze his back still turned to the gems. Shit. This was really bad. He couldn’t let the gems see him dressed like this. He needed to get out now. Steven glanced at the artifact still in his hand before taking a deep breathe. He closed his eyes and willed the artifact to activate. He thought of his friends and family and of his home. Suddenly, he saw his body being engulfed in a white light. As quickly as the light came it disappeared and Steven was left floating off the floor before falling and landing on top of what used to be the coffee table for the second time that day.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Great timing you guys!” past Steven eagerly pointed towards his future counterpart “You're just in tim-” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He was cut off by Amethysts laugh. “Who’s the goof in the weird outfit?” she asked as she pointed towards the living room.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Steven get behind us!” Pearl yelled when she finally noticed him. She pulled younger Steven closer to her body. “We’ll handle this intruder.” She said summoning her spear.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“You picked the wrong house to break into.” Garnet said calmly as she cracked her neck and summoned her gauntlets.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven gulped. It didn’t work he was still in the past. Maybe he wasn’t specific enough? He thought about the morning before the mission and how he had skipped breakfast in favor of getting some more work done. He thought about the dilapidated pyramid ruins, and he thought of the moment he had grabbed the gem artifact. Hope filled his heart as he felt his body be engulfed in a now familiar white light. That hope quickly died the moment that the light surrounding his body flickered out and he was left to plummet towards the floor.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Don’t hurt him! He-” Past Steven’s cries were drowned out by the sound of the gems surprise.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“What the heck was that!” yelled Amethyst as she quickly summoned her weapon.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Have humans always been able to do that?!” Pearl shrieked in surprise while glancing towards Garnet as if seeking some sort of explanation.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Gems! Don’t let him get away!” was Garnet’s only response as she charged toward Steven.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“No! Stop!” younger Steven yelled as he ran to get in between the gems and his older counterpart, but Steven knew it was no use he wouldn’t make it in time. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Fuck it. </span>
  </em>
  <span>Steven thought as he quickly turned around and summoned his shield in order to prevent himself from being completely pulverized by Garnet. Garnet’s fist hit his shield with enough strength that Steven felt the shockwaves of the punch reverberate through his body. Steven felt sweat begin to accumulate on his back. If he had waited a little longer to summon his shield he probably wouldn’t be standing right now.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“That shield…” Garnet looked up at Steven in surprise which quickly turned into anger as she finally got a good look at what he was wearing. “That outfit…”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven felt his heart pounding in his chest. Garnet had said those two words with such hatred and contempt that Steven was now certain that Garnet knew the significance of his clothing. He was unsure before given that Sapphire was a member of Blue Diamond’s court, but he had suspected that she might have seen Pink Diamond before since she was an aristocratic gem. If Garnet had recognized his outfit then he was certain that Pearl did. One quick glance in her direction had confirmed his fears. Pearl had dropped her spear and had both of her hands clamped over her mouth. She was shaking slightly as her muffled words attempted to make their way past her hands.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Stop fighting!” younger Steven yelled wedging his body between Garnet and himself.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Steven! Get away from him.” Garnet ordered sternly. Steven felt a small shudder run down his back at her harsh tone. He could count on his fingers the amount of times he had seen Garnet this upset. His outfit must have resurfaced old memories of the Diamonds and he was certain that none of those memories were very pleasant. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I can explain!” He yelled nervously with his shield still summoned in front of him just in case Garnet decided to attack again. He glanced up at the remaining members of the crystal gems to see if they would attack. Amethysts looked slightly confused, uncertainly glancing between Pearl, Garnet, and himself. Her confusion made sense to Steven, Garnet rarely let herself get this upset and Pearl’s startled reaction probably only served to confuse her more. Pearl, while clearly still shaken up, had finally composed herself enough to pick up her spear. While it didn’t look like she was going to attack right now the iron grip on her spear told Steven that he should pick his next words carefully.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I…” Steven struggled to find the best words to explain his situation. “I… uh…” This was going horribly and the look on Garnet’s face told him that she was quickly running out of patience.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“He’s me from the future!” Younger Steven yelled still standing in front of his older self protectively. “He wasn’t breaking in and he wasn’t trying to hurt me.” he explained in hopes of calming the gems. Steven held his breath and his muscles tensed as he waited for the gems to react to his younger self’s explanation. For a moment all eyes in the room were focused on him and he suddenly felt very exposed.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Amethyst was the first to react. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Dude, you look so old!” She exclaimed while putting away her weapon. Steven felt himself relax slightly at Amethyst reaction. She was always the best at rolling with the punches. She barely looked fazed by the situation at all. Steven thought that she sounded more curious than shocked.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“How old are you, like forty?” she guessed. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m seventeen.” he responded slightly offended at the comment. As Amethyst attempted to walk closer to him she was abruptly stopped by Garnet.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Huh?” Amethyst looked up at Garnet in confusion.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s not Steven.” Garnet said sternly.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“What do you mean? Look at him.” Amethyst gestured toward older Steven. “Sure he’s like really old now, but that’s definitely Steven.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah! And he has my gem and he can even summon mom’s shield.” younger Steven chimed in eager to clear up this misunderstanding.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s true.” Steven said as he slowly put away his shield. “I’m Steven.” he gestured toward the gem on his stomach. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“It really is Steven.” Pearl said her voice barely above a whisper. She quickly dissipated her weapon, but her rigid posture told Steven that she was still not completely comfortable with his presence.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Garnet?” His younger self said as he worriedly looked at Garnet who was still in a fighting stance with her weapon summoned. Upon realizing that she was the focus of attention of everyone in the room Garnet quickly composed herself and dissipated her gauntlets.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“...I see.” was her only response as she adjusted her visor; an action which Steven had come to associate with Garnet using her future vision. She was most likely trying to figure out more information about him by looking at the future. Maybe she was trying to assess whether or not he would attack them.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Wow Steven that is a brave look.” Amethyst commented clearly amused, ignoring her teammates strange behavior for the time being.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Is that what I wear in the future?” his younger self asked him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven mentally sighed. How was he supposed to explain his outfit without telling them about the Diamonds and about how his mom was actually… Steven took a deep breath and cleared his thoughts. His best course of action right now was to play dumb. The gems wouldn’t risk bringing up the Diamonds while his younger self was here.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“No, we were in some ancient gem ruins and I touched this thingy” he gestured to the artifact still in his hand “and all of a sudden I showed up here dressed like this” he let out a nervous chuckle.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“You need to go back to your time.” Garnet told him after a pause. Luckily, she did not press him for more information about his outfit.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Aww what! Can’t he stay a little longer?” his younger self asked.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Sorry Steven, but Garnet is right. This Steven doesn’t belong in our time.” Pearl gently told his younger self who was pouting.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I would go back if I could… it’s just that… I can’t” he said, glancing at the artifact in his hand.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“What do you mean you can’t?!” Pearl asked worriedly.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I tried using the artifact to go back already, but it just keeps sending me back here.” he explained. He was suddenly overcome with exhaustion as the realization that he was stuck here hit him like a ton of bricks. “I think It might have gotten damaged when I first arrived here.” he added after a pause of silence.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Ha! I can’t believe you broke it. You really are Steven.” Amethyst snickered causing him to blush. When he first started going on missions he would touch and grab anything and everything that caught his attention. It had caused them many accidents, but he hadn’t done something like that in such a long time.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“May I have a look?” Pearl asked.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven quickly handed over the artifact to Pearl. He shifted around nervously as Pearl inspected it.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“It appears to be an early prototype of the legendary glass of time. I’ve heard stories of gems disappearing after coming in contact with it, but I didn’t actually believe that they were true.” Pearl explained surprise evident in her voice.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Can you fix it?” Steven asked Pearl.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m not sure.” Pearl responded after a pause.” Steven felt his heart sink back into his stomach. “I can try, but it might take a while.” she quickly added in what Steven thought was an attempt to comfort him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“You know what that means?” asked his younger self. He paused as if waiting for someone to answer. “Slumber party!” he exclaimed happily seemingly unfazed by everyone’s silence. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven sighed before smiling weakly at his younger self and he was rewarded with a thousand watt smile. He glanced over at the gems just in time to see Garnet and Pearl look at each other. He didn’t need future vision to see that he was going to be the topic of their discussion later that night. Steven suppressed another sigh. At least he was home.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Twoie</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Twoie just wants to sleep.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Steven had never felt so tense in his own home before. He was certain that every twitch of his muscles and every breath he took was being intensely scrutinized. The moment everyone had calmed down, and it looked like no fights would break out, his younger self eagerly dragged him up to his bedroom and started to give him a tour. Garnet and Pearl had stayed by the kitchen area but he could feel their eyes watching his every move. It was clear that they didn’t trust him around his younger self and he was pretty sure that the only reason that he was even allowed near his younger self was because Amethyst was with them. Amethyst was the only member of the original crystal gems who did not seem to be suspicious of him. His younger self had shown him many of his old toys; some of which he had forgotten about. It was a strange experience to be given a tour of your childhood room. It had made him realize just how much his room had changed over the years. The most notable change being that he finally had a door for his room. Having some privacy was something he didn’t know that he had wanted until he got it. Glancing over to the kitchen area where he could still see Garnet and Pearl staring at him made him realize that he certainly did not miss that his old room was open for all to see. He would have to thank Bismuth for her part in helping to renovate the beach house when he got back home which would hopefully be very soon.</p><p> </p><p>“C’mon, there's gotta be something you can tell me about the future.” Amethyst whined as she lazily flopped on top of his younger selves bed. She had done nothing but bombard him with questions of the future. Steven had told Amethyst that he didn’t want to risk altering the future by accidentally revealing something before it was supposed to happen. He had hoped that she would stop asking him questions after that, but it had backfired horribly as Amethyst only seemed more determined to find out information about the future.</p><p> </p><p>“I wanna know what happens in the future too!” his younger self excitedly exclaimed as he finished organizing some of his toys and turned to face him. “Is Connie the president? Do my Crying Breakfast Friends theories come true? Do I finally manage to teach Lion any tricks?” He rapidly asked.</p><p> </p><p>“Yeah c’mon you can trust us, Big Steven.” Amethyst assured.</p><p> </p><p>“I really shouldn’t say anyth- wait Big Steven?” he asked taken aback by the name.</p><p> </p><p>“Yeah I figured that if you’re going to be staying here for a while then you should have your own name.” She looked over to his younger self who now appeared to be looking for something. Most likely another toy or book that he would eagerly show him.</p><p> </p><p>“What do you think Steven?” she asked.</p><p> </p><p>“Hmm…” his younger self momentarily paused his search as he considered the question. </p><p> </p><p>“What about Esteban Universidad!” he exclaimed happily. “I always thought that would be a cool name if I ever needed to go undercover.”</p><p> </p><p>“But I already have a name and I like it very much.” He didn’t want to change his name. He was Steven Universe, not Rose Quartz, and definitely not Pink Diamond. The Diamonds were wrong. They even admitted it themselves. </p><p> </p><p>“Well, you guys can’t both be Steven that’ll be way too confusing.” Amethyst said. Steven frowned as he realized that she had a point. Having two Steven’s around would get confusing very quickly.</p><p> </p><p>“Oh I know!” his younger self exclaimed. “Give me a minute.” he said as he ran to look for something. After a few seconds and lots of shuffling of items younger Steven proudly showed off a black marker.</p><p> </p><p>“I’ll be Steven one.” he said as he uncapped the marker and wrote the number one on both of his cheeks. </p><p> </p><p>“You can be Steven two. It’ll be just like last time.” he approached his older self and attempted to write on his cheeks.</p><p> </p><p>“Is that really necessary?” he asked while avoiding contact with the marker. Luckily he was much taller than his younger counterpart so it was very easy.</p><p> </p><p>“How else are people supposed to tell us apart?” younger Steven asked seriously. Steven looked at his younger selves face hoping to find a sign that he was joking. How would anyone confuse them? Sure they were technically the same person, but it was very easy to tell them apart. They looked more like brothers than the same person. Upon finding no trace of humor on his face Steven realized that his younger self was indeed serious. He sighed before taking the marker from his younger self and using it to write a moderately sized number 2 on his left hand.</p><p> </p><p>“How’s that?” he asked as he capped the marker and handed it back to his somewhat disappointed younger self.</p><p> </p><p>“Works for me Twoie.” Amethyst said sitting up.</p><p> </p><p>“Twoie?” he asked saying the name slowly.</p><p> </p><p>“Yeah, I figured it would be easier than having to call you Steven two all the time. You can be Twoie” she pointed at him.  “and he can be Steven.” she said as she pointed at his younger self.</p><p> </p><p>“That’s a great idea Amethyst!” Steven said as he turned toward Twoie to see his reaction. “Do you like it?” he asked.</p><p> </p><p>“Hmm…” he paused before answering. The name wasn’t bad and he liked it way better than Esteban Universidad. Plus it was unique and he didn’t have any better ideas.</p><p> </p><p> “I like it.” Twoie finally said while smiling at Steven who beamed back at him.</p><p> </p><p>“Oh! I almost forgot!” Steven shouted as he frantically reached into his jean pockets. “I need to take a picture.” he said as he opened his camera app and sat on his bed near Amethyst.</p><p> </p><p>“Connie’s going to love this.” he said excitedly as he gestured for Twoie to sit down by patting a space on the bed between himself and Amethyst. “You should be in the picture too Amethyst.” he told her happily.</p><p> </p><p>Twoie opened his mouth to refuse, but as if sensing his hesitance Steven began to unleash his ultimate weapon: his puppy dog eyes. Twoie looked at Amethyst for help, but she merely shrugged her shoulders. Unable to resist Steven’s stare for much longer he sighed before walking over to the bed and sitting down in between Amethyst and Steven. </p><p> </p><p><em> “Your posture Steven!” </em> He heard Pearl’s shrill reprimand echo in his head as he instantly began to correct his posture.</p><p> </p><p>It was a bit difficult to keep his back straight and shoulders squared because of the wobbly surface of the mattress, but after a few seconds of shifting his position he was finally able to do so while still being somewhat comfortable. As Steven attempted to get the perfect angle and as Amethyst struggled to pick which goofy face to use in the picture Twoie glanced toward the kitchen where Pearl and Garnet were still seated. Pearl was clinging to one of Garnet’s arms, glancing nervously between Garnet and himself. Steven squinted in an attempt to read Pearl’s lips, but was unable to make out any words because of her rushed whispering. Twoie shifted his focus to Garnet and instantly regretted doing so; Garnet was staring directly at him. Her gaze never wavered and Twoie was certain that she didn’t even blink under her visor. She would occasionally nod or shake her head at something Pearl said, but other than that she remained perfectly still. It was unnerving to say the least; he had seen Garnet give that same intense stare, but it was usually directed at an enemy and it had never been directed at him before.</p><p> </p><p>“Alright, say cheese!” Steven said as he smiled brightly.</p><p> </p><p>“Cheese!” Amethyst exclaimed as she stretched her arms so that they would be long enough to wrap around both Twoie and Steven’s shoulders which resulted in everyone being pressed closer together.</p><p> </p><p>“Cheese.” Twoie said a little less enthusiastically as he forced a small smile. He quickly glanced back at the kitchen and his smile faltered a little as he realized that Garnet was still staring at him; if anything her stare had gotten more intense if that were even possible. Pearl was also glancing worriedly between him and Steven. She looked so tense and Twoie was certain that she would pounce at him the second he even glanced at Steven in a threatening way. Once the picture was taken and there was a little more distance between himself and Steven he saw Pearl relax slightly. Twoie felt a little hurt by her reaction. Did she really think that he would hurt Steven? The hurt quickly left as he glanced at his current outfit. He looked like a Diamond and Diamonds weren’t exactly known for their kindness and restraint. Upon realizing this he scooted a bit farther away from Steven who was too busy texting Connie to notice.  Amethyst, who noticed the stares, appeared to be annoyed by them. She descended the stairs that lead to Steven’s room and quickly walked over to where Garnet and Pearl were still seated. </p><p> </p><p>“-acting really weird.” and “-something you're not telling me.” were some of the only phrases that Amethyst said that Twoie was able to hear. </p><p> </p><p>Twoie was not able hear whatever Pearl had said in response to Amethysts concerns, but whatever she said had upset Amethyst. She angrily retreated back to her room without even glancing back at him or Steven. Twoie frowned as he remembered how Amethyst and Pearl used to bicker all the time when he was a kid. Nowadays they would tease and give each other a hard time, but it was mostly playful. Their relationship had improved so much that it was jarring to see them act like this. Twoie understood Amethyst’s  frustration at not being told what was going on. He remembered when he was younger how he desperately tried to prove himself to the gems so that they would include him on missions. He wanted so badly to be seen as an equal, but more often than not he felt excluded from the team. He and Amethyst had bonded over the fact that they were the worst crystal gems; it had even become something of a joke between them. Things were different now Twoie knew that the gems saw him as an equal, but looking at the way the gems acted now really made Twoie appreciate how much they had changed. The sound of Amethyst’s door slamming shut made enough noise to pull Steven’s focus away from his phone.</p><p> </p><p>“Huh? Where did Amethyst go?” Steven asked glancing at the empty spot on his bed where she had been sitting moments ago.</p><p> </p><p>“Amethyst decided to go back to her room.” Pearl quickly answered not wanting to upset Steven with the news that she and Amethyst were arguing again.</p><p> </p><p>“What! Really?” he asked sadly. “But we were going to have a slumber party.” Steven said as he began to yawn.</p><p> </p><p>“You should rest Steven. It’s getting late.” Garnet advised Steven finally looking away from Twoie.</p><p> </p><p>“No, I’m fine. The night’s still young” he said as another yawn escaped him. “I feel great.” he said fooling no one as he began to rub at his eyes. Twoie suppressed a chuckle, he had forgotten how bad of a liar he used to be. The only person worse than him at lying was Pearl who would turn into a nervous mess when she attempted to fib.</p><p> </p><p>“Garnets right Steven your human half needs sleep in order to function properly.” Pearl said. </p><p> </p><p>Steven looked at him as if seeking his opinion on the matter. He glanced out the window before nodding at him. It was pretty late and sleep was important. Twoie suppressed a yawn; he was starting to feel rather tired as well. Even before he arrived in the past he had not been getting as much sleep as he knew he probably should have. One time he had even gone a few days without sleeping and he might have continued doing so were it not for the gems noticing the bags under his eyes. They forced him to sleep and made him promise to take better care of himself and since then he did make an effort to sleep everyday, but it was usually only for a few hours. He had reasoned that since he was half gem, half diamond, that he didn’t really need as much sleep as a typical human did.</p><p> </p><p>“Sleep is a curse, and yet a curse I need to live.” Steven said rather dramatically as he got up from his bed and approached his dresser. He pulled out a pair of yellow pajamas that Twoie recognized as his banana pajamas.</p><p> </p><p>“I’m going to go get ready for bed.” Steven announced as he exited his room and made his way over to the bathroom. “You can borrow some of my pajamas.” Steven told him before disappearing completely into the bathroom.</p><p> </p><p>The next couple of minutes were the most painfully awkward ones of Twoie’s life. With Steven gone the tension in the room drastically increased. Twoie was frozen in his spot on Steven’s bed. Pearl and Garnet were both staring at him and he was unsure at what he was supposed to do. He wanted them to trust him, but he knew that would be very difficult considering what clothes he had arrived in. He was certain that Steven and Amethyst had believed him when he told them that he didn’t know why he was dressed so strangely, but he knew that Pearl and Garnet were not so easily lied to. He glanced at Steven’s still open dresser silently contemplating whether or not to borrow some pajamas like Steven had suggested. He ultimately decided against it as he was fairly certain that Steven didn’t have any pajamas his size. He mentally sighed when he realized that he would have to sleep in his current outfit. Twoie slowly rose from the bed afraid that if he did so too quickly he would startle Pearl and Garnet. He descended the stairs in what he hoped was a non threatening way, but he probably just looked silly. He hesitated when he reached the bottom of the stairs. He wanted to grab the spare pillow and blanket that he knew should be in the closet near the stairs, but he didn’t know how Pearl and Garnet would react to him rifling through Steven’s things. He knew it was a silly fear as they were technically his things as well, but he didn’t want to further antagonize himself in their eyes. He approached the closet and rested his hand on the door, but didn’t actually open. He glanced at Pearl and Garnet, they had both stood up.</p><p> </p><p>“I’m just getting the spare pillow and blanket.” he explained as he awkwardly pointed toward the closet. Other than Garnet stiffly nodding at him they did not react to what he said. They also did not sit back down which told him that he was failing horribly at being non threatening. He opened the closet and was rewarded with a loud creak. Had this closet always creaked this loudly? He could hear his heartbeat increase in speed and wondered if Garnet and Pearl could hear it as well. It was so quiet. He walked over to the couch and began to set up what would be his bed for the night. He glanced at the temple door; he could probably sleep in his room in the temple. It would certainly be more comfortable than the couch and he could actually have a bed. He quickly banished the idea from his mind as he realized that it would make Pearl and Garnet extremely uncomfortable. He fluffed his pillow one last time before sitting on top of the white blanket. He went to take off his gloves, but hesitated as he did so.</p><p> </p><p><em> “Pink, quit fooling around! You have to present your best possible self at all times.” </em>he heard Blue Diamond’s reprimands echo in his head. </p><p> </p><p>She had reacted so negatively when he expressed his desire to dress like he usually did. She was still in denial about Pink Diamond’s death at that point, but even after she had begun to see him as Steven she still insisted that he dress like Pink Diamond. Anything else would be considered ‘inappropriate’ especially if it hid his gem. According to Blue and Yellow Diamond he should never cover up his gem; he was a Diamond and as such he should proudly show off his gem not conceal it. To do so would be considered ‘disgraceful’ and ‘behavior not befitting a Diamond’. Twoie shook his head to clear his thoughts. He was being silly; no one here would care if he took off his gloves or shoes. How would he sleep comfortably if he had them on. He took off his gloves and neatly folded them before he placed them on top of the coffee table that was near the couch. Next, he eagerly took off his footwear which had been bothering him even before he touched the artifact that got him in this situation. He placed them on the floor near the end of the couch. With that done he sat awkwardly on the couch and resumed his strange staring contest with Garnet. He straightened his back again even though he knew that his posture was fine and folded his arms in his lap. He desperately wanted to say something to clear the tense mood, but could think of nothing. He cleared his throat and opened his mouth with the intent to say something, but was interrupted by the sound of the bathroom door opening. After what felt like an eternity, but what was probably only a few minutes, Steven finally emerged from the bathroom dressed in his banana pajamas. As if a spell had been broken on her Garnet finally pulled her intense gaze away from him and focused her attention to Steven.</p><p> </p><p>“Twoie, you’re not wearing pajamas. Oh sorry!” he said as he lightly slapped his forehead. “Were you waiting to use the bathroom.” he said apologetically.</p><p> </p><p>“...Twoie?” Pearl repeated slowly looking at Steven for an explanation.</p><p> </p><p>“It’s what we decided to call him. I’ll be Steven one” he said as he pointed at himself. Twoie realized that he no longer had the number one written on his cheeks. He must have washed them off while he was in the bathroom. “And he’ll be Steven two or Twoie for short.” he explained proudly as he pointed at him.</p><p> </p><p>“Oh… that's nice.” Pearl said with a barely concealed tinge of disappointment. She was probably hoping that his new name held more information about him, but it was just a made up name.</p><p> </p><p>“None of your pajamas will fit me.” he answered Stevens previous question.</p><p> </p><p>“Can’t you just shape shift so they’ll fit?” Steven asked him. Twoie paused as he considered the question. He probably could shape shift into his younger body, but he was uncertain if he could maintain that form while sleeping. Plus the last time he had changed his body for that long he turned into a baby. He grimaced as he remembered the incident that happened during his birthday party.</p><p> </p><p>“I don’t like shapeshifting.” he said finally.</p><p> </p><p>“Oh, yeah…” Steven said seemingly understanding his hesitance as he briefly glanced at his fingers. He must have been remembering the whole cat fingers incident. Twoie looked at his own hands still neatly folded in his lap. That incident had been very traumatizing for him and it was something that he did not like remembering. The memory was probably still fresh in Steven’s mind. It probably happened not long ago for him, but Twoie hadn’t really thought about it for years. That reminded him that he should probably ask Steven for his age at some point so that he could figure out what was going to happen soon. Steven looked about twelve or thirteen, but Twoie wasn’t sure his exact age.</p><p> </p><p>“Don’t worry we can go visit dad tomorrow. I’m sure he’ll have some clothes that will fit you.” Steven said perking up again. “But I should probably go to bed.” he said as he let out another yawn.</p><p> </p><p>Twoie felt himself stiffen a bit at Steven’s suggestion but still managed to smile in agreement. He hadn’t seen his dad in months. It's not as if he didn’t want to see his dad, but he was just so busy with all his duties as a Diamonds. He was also helping with the construction of little homeworld, a place on earth where gems could learn to be themselves. His dad told him that he understood and was supportive of him which only served to make him feel more guilty. When he got back home the first thing he would do was visit his dad.</p><p> </p><p>“Goodnight Garnet, Pearl.” Steven said as he struggled to hug them both at the same time.</p><p> </p><p>“Goodnight Steven.” Pearl and Garnet said as they awkwardly tried to hug him back which was made difficult by their huge difference in height. Twoie smiled at the sweet display.</p><p> </p><p>“Goodnight Twoie.” Steven said as he moved to hug him. He stiffened a bit before relaxing into the hug. He had not expected Steven to hug him, but he was not completely surprised by the fact that he did. He used to be so sweet and affectionate. When had that changed? He ruffled Steven’s hair because he remembered he always liked it when Garnet did that. Steven seemed to like too as he gave him a bright smile before heading to his room, Twoie heard the sound of the lights being turned off and the ruffling of blankets signifying that Steven had gone to sleep. He allowed himself to yawn as he got underneath the covers and closed his eyes. Just as he was starting to get comfortable he realized that Pearl and Garnet had not left the kitchen. He gulped before slowly opening his eyes again and in although it was now dark he could faintly make out an outline of two people in the kitchen. Twoie was in shock. Were they just planning on watching him sleep? That was insanely creepy and something he would only expect of Pearl, but even she had stopped watching him sleep when he had asked her to. Twoie rolled over so that his back was facing the kitchen and the two gems who were in the kitchen. He didn’t have the energy to care about them right now and even though he could still feel their eyes on his back his exhausted body had no trouble falling asleep. He would deal with them tomorrow.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Someone asked me why the Steven from the future (Twoie) was dressed in Pink Diamonds outfit when he was sent into the past. The reason for this is because Twoie is from a timeline where escapism never happened and the Diamond Days arc went on for much longer. This caused Twoie to spend more time around the Diamonds. He eventually managed to convince White Diamond to help cure the corrupted gems it just took much longer than in the original series.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Midnight Meeting</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Garnet, Pearl, and Twoie have a talk.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>For the first time in millennia Garnet’s future vision was not working, or more precisely it was not working on Twoie; the strange gem who had appeared in their living room a few short hours ago. He had arrived dressed as Pink Diamond which, due to his proximity to Steven, had immediately sent her into a frenzy. She had attacked him without assessing the situation first; a rash decision that had frightened Steven. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Ruby part of Garnet did not believe his claims of being Steven from the future despite the fact that he was able to summon Rose’s shield; she just wanted to poof and bubble the gem. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Sapphire part of her was equally distressed by the whole situation but was able to accept the fact that Twoie was most likely telling the truth; she wanted answers.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Excluding his unsettling choice of clothing there was no other reason to believe that Twoie was not who he claimed to be, he bore a striking resemblance to Steven, possessed the Rose Quartz gem, and was even able to summon Rose’s shield. Despite the overwhelming evidence in Twoie’s favor both of Garnet’s components remained suspicious of him. She had wanted to interrogate him and find out the reason for his appearance or if he was connected to Pink Diamond in any way, but was unable to do so because of Steven’s presence. She did not want Steven to ever have to know about the Diamonds; the earth had been safe from them for thousands of years and she hoped that it would continue to be safe for thousands more. Twoie had feigned ignorance and claimed that he didn’t know why he was dressed as Pink Diamond, but Garnet could sense that he was hiding something and she was determined to figure out what. Knowing that violence would get her nowhere and may even provoke Twoie to retaliate she decided that her best course of action was to play along for the time being, all while keeping a watchful eye on him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven, unsurprisingly, seemed thrilled at the prospect of meeting his future self and had immediately dragged Twoie to his room. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Amethyst, too, seemed unconcerned with Twoie’s presence. She had no reason to distrust him and while she aware of the Diamonds she had never seen them before. She was content with chatting with both Steven and Twoie which was something that Garnet was grateful for because it meant that Amethyst was nearby to protect Steven if Twoie decided to try anything.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl was the only one beside herself who knew the meaning of Twoie’s outfit. She had been on edge ever since Twoie had arrived and the news that Twoie would most likely be stuck with them for a while only served to make her more anxious. She had taken to clinging onto one of her arms, something which she only did when emotionally distressed, and she had even snapped at Amethyst. Ordinarily Garnet would attempt to get Amethyst and Pearl to reconcile, but she had been preoccupied with trying to use her future vision on Twoie. She had attempted to do so shortly after Twoie had arrived, but had no success. She had assumed that her anger and stress had clouded her vision, but she had tried again when she had calmed down and still had no success. That's when she started to worry. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven and Twoie had both gone to sleep hours ago. Both Pearl and herself had stayed seated in the darkness of the kitchen. Garnet knew that Pearl did not yet trust Twoie enough to leave him alone with Steven and that was a big part of the reason why Garnet had also stayed. The other reason she had stayed was because Twoie had been able to consistently evade her future vision. She had been staring at him for the majority of the night in an attempt to use her future vision to gather intel about him. She only looked away long enough to bid Steven goodnight. Every time she had tried to use her future vision she had failed. Garnet had begun to worry that something was wrong with her; the only other time she had trouble using her future vision was when she first came into existence. Her first years as a fusion had been awkward and confusing and while Sapphire was used to visions of the future, Ruby was not. This made it difficult for Garnet to process the visions she would sporadically receive and she would often times feel overwhelmed by them. It had taken her years before she could reliably use her future vision, but even back when she couldn’t make sense of her visions she had still been seeing something. When it came to Twoie she saw nothing; it was like turning on a television and being met with static. Worse of all it seemed that events around Twoie would also become harder to predict as everything around him had the tendency to fracture and blur. Despite her recent failures Garnet continued to try and use her future vision, but was only met with frustration and failure. She would have continued doing so all night were it not for Pearl breaking the silence with a question.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What do we do now?” she asked quietly tearing her eyes away from Twoie’s sleeping form in order to face her.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ever since Rose Quartz had… left, Garnet had been in charge of the crystal gems. Amethyst was still very young, comparatively speaking, and had little experience or interest in being a leader. Pearl was organized, intelligent, and had many years of experience leading the rebel forces to fight against Homeworld’s tyranny. On paper she had many traits of  a good leader, but she had always been uncertain of her abilities and with Rose gone she had retreated into herself. Everyone had been affected by Rose’s absence, but none more so than Pearl; she would spend weeks holed up in her room crying. It was clear that she was in no position to lead. That left Garnet to pick up the pieces and attempt to lead them despite her own grief. She couldn’t afford ro show doubt or weakness because Amethyst, Pearl, and Steven needed her to be strong, to be a leader.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“We need to talk to him and figure out his intentions,” she answered with as much confidence as she could muster. “If he is connected to Homeworld in anyway we need to know about it.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Do you really think he’s Steven from the future?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Garnet paused before answering. The truth was that she didn’t know. She wanted to believe that Twoie was telling the truth, but with her future vision on the fritz she was uncertain; something that rarely happened. It was certainly possible that he was a spy sent by Homeworld, but the fact that he had a Rose Quartz gem made that claim a bit difficult to believe. To the best of her knowledge all the Rose Quartz gems had either been shattered or bubbled. With the shattering of Pink Diamond by a Rose Quartz it was unlikely that the Diamonds spared any of the other Quartzes, but it was also not impossible. Perhaps they had spared a few and were now attempting to use them to gain intel on the crystal gems.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“We’ll find out soon enough.” she answered as she slowly approached Twoie, who was still sleeping on the couch.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She lightly shook him in an attempt to wake him, but he merely mumbled incoherently before burrowing his face deeper into his pillow. She shook him again, this time more roughly and succeeded in waking him up.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Wha…?” he weakly mumbled as he opened his bleary eyes to peer up at them. “Garnet? Pearl?” he questioned as he looked at both of them.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“We need to talk.” she stated as she walked toward the warp pad along with Pearl who had once again latched onto her arm. As Twoie fumbled to get ready Garnet decided that the sky arena was the best place to have this discussion. It was isolated so it would be difficult for Twoie to run away and was suited for battle in case a fight broke out, but most importantly it was located far away from Steven who was still fast asleep.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Let’s go.” Twoie said as he stepped onto the warp pad much more alert now. Garnet did not reply she merely activated the warp pad and after a flash of light they were gone.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>While in the warp stream Garnet took note of his oddly graceful stance. If he really was Steven, Garnet had a hard time believing it. When Steven first started using the warp pad he had trouble standing and would frequently float away laughing and he would fall on his face when landing. Twoie was the complete opposite, he stood poised and elegant in the warp stream and when they arrived he gracefully landed on his toes much like a ballerina. When Twoie noticed her stares he flushed and looked away.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Why are we at the sky arena?” he asked her nervously as they ascended the stairs that lead to the main part of the arena. Garnet noted that he seemed familiar with the location. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“To talk.” she answered calmly as she took a seat in one of the stands surrounding the arena. Pearl immediately sat down next to her.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie hesitantly sat near enough to them where they could talk, but far enough so they wouldn’t touch. He cleared his throat and looked at her, “So… uh…” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Why are you dressed like that?” Pearl asked abruptly breaking her silence. She flushed blue as everyone’s attention shifted over to her. She released Garnet’s arm and began to wring her hands together nervously. “Oh… I… that is to say are you really Steven?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was silent for a moment and Garnet glanced over to see Twoie’s face scrunched up in confusion.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah I’m Steven,” he answered. “From about three…  maybe four years in the future. I’m not too sure.” he admitted sheepishly.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Garnet saw Pearl frown.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Earlier when I said that I didn’t know why I was dressed like this… that wasn’t exactly true.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You lied to us.” Garnet was surprised that he had admitted to lying. She had expected him to continue to deceive them.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I didn’t mean to!” he replied hurriedly “I just didn’t want to bring... her up in front of Steven.” he glanced down at his outfit.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Garnet frowned. So he did know about Pink Diamond. Pearl began tremble slightly next to her.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Steven is still too young to know about that kinda stuff, y’know?”  He rubbed the back of his neck nervously. “The only reason I’m wearing this is because we were… practicing for a play.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearls trembling abruptly stopped, “...what?” She asked clearly confused.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Garnet blinked. That certainly wasn’t what she was expecting him to say. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah we were doing a play about how the crystal gems saved earth and stuff,” He began explaining after seeing their confusion. “We had to go on a mission to retrieve a gem artifact and I didn’t have time to change. I played the part of-” he gestured toward his clothing. “the villainous Pink Diamond.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>There was a long stretch of silence where no one said anything.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Of course!” Pearl shouted as she stood up, all signs of stress gone. “A play! That would explain…” her voice faltered as she glanced back at Twoie. She shook her head. “I can’t believe I actually thought…” Pearl laughed a bit erratically as she trailed off again.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Garnet frowned. Pearl was acting strange.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Heh… yeah.” Twoie laughed right alongside Pearl. He looked a bit more relaxed now too.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Garnet was unsure about how to feel. Twoie’s explanation made some sense, but it also raised more questions. It was very unlikely that they would want to do a play about Pink Diamond especially if Steven was around to see it, but perhaps something had changed in the future. This older version of Steven did seem more mature than the Steven currently asleep back in Beach City. She looked at Twoie to determine if he was lying to them again, but found that it was difficult to do so. The Steven she knew rarely ever lied and when he did it was very obvious. Twoie was a bit harder to read; he didn’t appear panicked or guilty like Steven usually did, but Garnet still did not fully believe his story. However, it was obvious that he did not plan to come to this point in time so he most likely would not pose a threat. The main thing that concerned her was the fact that he seemed able to disrupt her future vision, but that could have something to do with the artifact that brought him here in the first place.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Garnet stood up. “I apologize for the way I treated you earlier,” she looked over to Twoie who was still talking to Pearl. “I just wanted Steven to be safe.” she said.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie looked taken aback by her apology. “It’s fine, really. I mean I did kind of show up out of nowhere,” he smiled at her. “The important thing is that we cleared up any… misunderstandings.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Garnet smiled back at him. He was definitely hiding something.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yes, of course!” Pearl said a bit too enthusiastically. “It was all just a big misunderstanding.” she let out a loud relieved laugh.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Friends?” Twoie asked both her and Pearl as he offered them handshakes.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Garnet shook his hand. “Friends.” she repeated.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She wouldn’t trust him completely yet</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Future Vision</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Steven learns about future vision and Twoie makes an important decision.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Twoie smiled at his reflection as he dried off his hair which was still wet from his shower. Despite being somewhat tired he was in a good mood. Garnet and Pearl had woken him up late at night to interrogate him. He had hoped he would have more time to prepare a good cover story, but he should have known that Garnet and Pearl would want to talk to him as soon as possible. Luckily, he was able to come up with a decent lie which Pearl and Garnet seemed to accept. Pearl especially seemed eager to accept the fact that his outfit was just a costume for a play. Garnet had even apologized for attacking him; everything had worked out for the best. He just hoped that Pearl would fix artifact soon. Preferably before he accidentally changed anything major. He let out a small yawn as he exited the bathroom. Maybe he would make himself some coffee.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“-your concern, but that language was inappropriate. I'm a Crystal Gem, I'm a big boy now. And I got to stop saying stuff like, ‘I'm a big boy now’.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie looked up towards Steven’s room where Steven was busy sternly lecturing his toys. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>What is he doing?</span>
  </em>
  <span> Twoie wondered as he walked up the stairs that led to Steven’s bedroom. Steven had not been home when he went to go take a shower, but it seemed like he was back and full of energy. Twoie suppressed another yawn, he wished that he could have that much energy in the morning.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What are you up to?” he asked Steven who still had not noticed his presence.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Twoie!” Steven exclaimed excitedly as he hurriedly turned to face him “You’re finally awake!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, I just got out of the shower.” he replied as he noticed a box full of toys in Steven’s arms.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Oh! I almost forgot.” Steven said as he placed the box he was holding on the ground and moved to grab a bag on the foot of his bed. “I went to go ask dad for some boxes this morning and while I was there I got you something.” Steven eagerly handed him the bag.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie took the bag from Steven. He opened it and peered inside. “Clothes?” he asked as he looked up at Steven.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah! I know I said we’d go visit dad together, but I figured that you would really want some new clothes.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie took a seat on Steven’s bed as he took out the clothes from the bag. There was some black t-shirts inside with a gold star emblazoned on their front; they were similar to the ones he would wear when he wasn’t on homeworld except that the shoulder sleeves of the shirts all appeared to have been cut off. Twoie held the shirts up in front of himself; they seemed slightly big for him, but they would probably fit. Inside the bag there was also several pairs of blue jeans and a single pair of blue sandals.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Do you like it?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It’s perfect, thank you Steven.” Twoie was extremely grateful for the new clothes, especially the sandals. He did not want to keep wearing his homeworld clothes; it had brought him enough trouble. He was a little disappointed that he didn’t get to see his dad, but he figured it was probably for the best since his dad tended to be uncomfortable around ‘magic stuff’.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You should go try them on to make sure they fit.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’ll go do that right now while you-” he glanced at the box still on the floor “clean your room?” he half said half asked.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven nodded. “I’m getting rid of some of my old toys because I’m a bi-” Steven paused. “...large… man now.” he said as he stood up taller and puffed out his chest in an attempt to look more mature, but only succeeding in looking adorable.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie chuckled as he ruffled Steven’s hair. “Ok then, I’ll be right back.” he said as he made his way over to the bathroom.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He closed the bathroom door and began to change into the clothes that Steven had given him. Something about today felt familiar. He neatly folded his homeworld outfit and placed it in the bag as he tried to remember if anything significant had happened to him on this day. He put his phone is his jean pocket. The battery had died, but he figured that he could ask Steven to borrow his charger later. He paused as he decided where to put the Diamond communicator that he had brought from his timeline. The Diamonds had given it to him so that they could contact each other even when he was not on homeworld. It was smaller than the one that Peridot had taken from the moonbase and more advanced as well. He didn't want to leave it laying around in fear that someone would find it, but he also didn’t have anywhere he could hide it. He frowned as he wrapped it up in one of his gloves before shoving it deep into the bottom of the bag. He securely tied the bag closed. Hopefully no one would find it because he didn’t know if he could explain that away. As he finished putting on the blue sandals he heard the sound of objects falling in the living room. He rushed outside the bathroom to make sure Steven was unharmed.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“-don't think you can handle that information.” he managed to hear Garnet say as she helped Steven pick up his fallen toys.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Are you gonna tell me something cool about yourself?” Steven asked her.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie gasped. Today was the day that Garnet first told him about her Future vision.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I guess you could say that I have a sort of-”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Future vision.” Twoie finished for Garnet causing Steven and Garnet to both look up at him as they finally realized his presence </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie hesitantly smiled in Garnet’s direction. She seemed friendly enough last night, but he was still worried that she didn’t trust him. He mentally sighed in relief when she nodded at him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You look good, Twoie.” Garnet complimented him. Twoie wondered if she genuinely liked his new outfit or if she just really hated his old one.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You look amazing! I was worried they would be too big for you, but I forgot how tall you are.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Thank you, it feels good to be out of those old clothes.” Twoie told them and that was partly true, but It did feel a bit strange to have his gem covered again. He had gotten so used to parading it around that now that it was covered by his shirt he felt strangely suffocated.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven suddenly looked back at Garnet as if remembering something. “Do you really have future vision?!” he asked as stars appeared in his eyes.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Garnet smiled at Steven. “It’s true. I'm able to see possible outcomes to most situations, which comes in handy since you seem to attract a lot of danger.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven smirked. “Well, danger is my middle name.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“That's a lie. Your middle name, is cutie-pie.” Garnet replied as she gently booped Steven’s nose causing him to laugh.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Twoie once again lifted his dumbbells to the cadence of the radio instructor. It sounded Korean, but Twoie wasn’t sure. Steven had suggested that all three of them go outside and exercise and Twoie had foolishly agreed thinking that they would go for a run or do some pushups, he certainly did not expect to be doing whatever this was. Twoie vaguely remembered enjoying doing this when he was younger, but try as he might he couldn’t remember why. It all just felt so childish to him now and he really wanted to stop, but couldn’t bring himself to because of how happy Steven had been when they both agreed to exercise with him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie glanced over at Garnet who appeared to be increasingly more annoyed as time went on. It was funny watching someone as serious as Garnet do this silly exercise routine. It became funnier when Twoie realized that Garnet did not really need to exercise since she was a gem. He smiled, it was kinda sweet that Garnet agreed to this just to make Steven happy.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Garnet abruptly smashed the radio. Twoie winced, he was glad Garnet wasn’t angry at him anymore.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Okay, we’re done.” she said.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven looked over at him. “Yup, I’m done too.” he told him as he let his dumbbells drop to the ground.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He pouted as he looked sadly at both of them. “But the day still has so much potential!” he exclaimed as he perked up once again. “Garnet, what are my breakfast possibilities?” Steven asked her as he set his dumbbells on the ground.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Well, you're already outside, so you'll probably go to the Big Donut.” she told him not even using her future vision.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Wow... That's amazing!” Steven said shocked at the accuracy of Garnet’s prediction. “do you see any possible futures where you guys, um, come with me and have a great time?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Sure I could use some coffee.” Twoie answered him with a smile. He did feel a bit more alert now because of the exercise, but he was still kind of tired. Unsurprisingly, being woken up in the middle of the night to be interrogated was not good for one’s sleep schedule.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Garnet?” Steven asked. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hmm…” Garnet stared at Steven while she thought over his question. Twoie knew she would probably say yes and Steven’s goofy stares in her direction only made him more certain. Twoie had to bite back a laugh as Steven made his eyebrows do a silly dance. How do you even get your face to look like that? Could he still do that?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yes.” Garnet said after a couple moments of silence.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Really?! Then let's go!” Steven eagerly grabbed his and Garnet’s hands before running toward the direction of the Big Donut. “So, can Pearl and Amethyst see the future, too?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“No one can see the future. I can see options and trajectories. Time is like a river that splits into creeks, or pools into lakes, or careens down waterfalls. I have the map, and I steer the ship.” Garnet explained.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie almost facepalmed. Did Garnet really think Steven could understand that? When he was told that at Steven’s age all that he got out of it was that Garnet’s powers had something to do with water.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I see..” Steven said nodding in understandment, but it was clear to Twoie that he did not understand at all.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hey, Steven remember when you were little and dad would read those choose your own adventure books with you?”  Twoie asked. He did not want to change the future too much, but he figured that helping Steven understand future vision wouldn’t hurt. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven’s eyes light up in recognition. “Yeah! I loved those books! Dad would always let me go back and change my decision if I got the bad ending.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie nodded as he fondly remembered the evenings he would spend in his dad's van eagerly reading books. “Well, future vision is kind of like that. There are a lot of bad endings, some good endings and the ending you get is determined by the choices you make.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie smiled as he saw understanding flash in Steven’s eyes. “Oh! So it's like Garnet has a choose your own adventure book, but for real life.” Steven said smiling.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah I guess you could say that.” Twoie replied nodding at Steven. It was a bit more complicated than that, but it would do for an explanation.</span>
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>
  <span>The door chimed as Garnet held it opened indicating that they had arrived at the big donut.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“So, what would happen if I said ‘hi’ to Sadie?” Steven asked looking up at Garnet.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“The most probable outcome is that Sadie will say ‘hi’ back.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hmm... Hi, Sadie!” Steven greeted Sadie.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Oh, hi, Steven.” Sadie said not looking at them as she was busy checking the soda dispensers. Twoie smiled as a rush of nostalgia hit him; he hadn’t seen Sadie dressed in a Big Donut uniform in forever.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Oh, that was an easy one. What would happen if…” Steven paused as he attempted to think of something harder to predict.  “I said ‘hi’ to my BFF, Lars?! Our friendship is deep, but complicated. So the outcome of this experiment is way unpredictable!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie glanced at Lars who still looked half asleep by the coffee machine. It was strange seeing him back at the Big Donut and it was even stranger seeing him in a color other than pink.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You’ll startle him and he’ll accidentally spill all the coffee.” Twoie warned Steven.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven looked over to Garnet who nodded. “That is the most likely outcome.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Wow! How did you know that Twoie?!” Steven asked him stars appearing in his eyes. “Do you have future vision too?!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie chuckled. “No, I don’t have future vision. I just remembered when all this stuff happened to me.” he explained.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“That's right! You probably remember exactly what happened!” Steven gasped in excitement. “So it's like you have super future vision!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie blinked in surprise. “I guess you could call it that.” he had never thought about it like that before. He could predict things with one hundred percent accuracy now that he was in the past, but if he changed things too much then his ‘super future vision’ as Steven called it would be useless.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“That's amazing! You’re the coolest.” Steven told him causing him to blush.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“The coolest.” he smiled as he repeated the words to himself. No one had ever called him that before. The only compliments he had been given recently were of gems calling him ‘luminous’ or ‘radiant’ and he suspected that they only did so because they still thought of him as their Diamond.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie glanced at Garnet who appeared to stiffen at Steven’s words. If he didn’t know any better he would say that she almost looked jealous. Twoie shook his head to clear his silly thoughts. Why would Garnet be jealous of him? </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hi, Lars.” Steven greeted a bit more quietly and with a safer distance between them.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Lars tiredly turned his head towards Steven. “Oh, it's you.” he said annoyance tinging his words. Twoie winced he had forgotten how much of a grump Lars used to be.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Lars blinked as he looked at Twoie and then back at Steven. “Wait. There’s more of you?!” he asked.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven smiled as he happily dragged Twoie closer to Lars to properly introduce them. “Lars, this is my…” Steven faltered a bit as he struggled to explain Twoie’s existence.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Brother. I’m Steven’s older brother.” Twoie quickly answered for Steven.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You didn’t tell me you had a brother, Steven.” Sadie said in mild surprise as she turned to face them finally taking note of Twoie.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I live out of state.” Twoie quickly explained before Steven had a chance to answer. Steven’s lies were the most obvious.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven quickly nodded in agreement. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Oh, well it's nice to meet you. I’m Sadie.” she smiled as she offered him a handshake.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’m Ste-” Twoie stopped talking. Shit, he was supposed to say Twoie. “eeven’s older brother, Twoie.” he let out a nervous chuckle as he shook Sadie’s hand.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Ugh, great more of Steven’s weird family.” Lars said sarcastically as he rolled his eyes.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“That’s Lars, don’t mind him. He’s a really nice guy once you get to know him.” Sadie said gesturing towards where Lars was standing.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah Lars is great!” Steven happily agreed with Sadie.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie merely smiled at Lars who looked away in annoyance. He mentally sighed he didn’t have enough energy to put up with this version of Lars.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Twoie happily sipped some of his coffee as he, Steven, and Garnet approached the Fry Stand. After some more questions by Sadie and some sarcastic comments by Lars they had decided to go get some fry bits. Well Steven had decided to go, he and Garnet has just followed him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>PeeDee had been equally surprised by the fact that Steven had an older brother, but seemed to like him well enough after he introduced himself.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You know exactly what I want.” Steven told PeeDee, who merely huffed in annoyance as he went to go retrieve the fry bits.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span> “Any possible futures here where I'm hurt by this?” Steven asked Garnet.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hmm... Tons.” Garnet told him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Uhh... Like... what?...” he asked nervously not expecting to be hurt by fry bits.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Well, for starters… You could just be going on about your business, eating your fry bits, and then suddenly you choke to death!”  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven’s eyes widened in fear.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span> “Or you get so distracted that you fall down a manhole!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven looked like he turned a shade paler.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span> “You could get food poisoning, or be bullied by wasps. And that's just a few instances off the top of my head.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven was trembling a bit.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie bit his lip in order to keep himself from comforting Steven. This was an important lesson that he needed to learn in order to grow as a person. He couldn’t risk changing the past or else something horrible could happen in the future. It was the responsible thing to do.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Twoie grimaced as he watched Steven struggle to make a sandwich. He had put on a helmet earlier and now his arms were shaking as he attempted to pick up a knife. Steven screamed unable to pick up the knife due to his fear of getting hurt.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Steven!” Garnet said startled by his outburst.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Wait! Wait! I've got it.” Steven said as he picked up the jar of mayonnaise and dropped it all onto his sandwich.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“That will kill you faster.” Garnet said in an attempt to make Steven laugh. Twoie winced knowing that it would only make Steven more anxious.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Not funny!” Steven told her fearfully.</span>
</p><p> </p><p><span>Garnet</span> <span>frowned finally realizing how scared Steven truly was.</span></p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Nice noggin, Steven.” Amethyst laughed as she ran towards the warp pad alongside Pearl. “Nice clothes, Twoie. You kinda look like Greg before he got old.” she told him causing him to briefly flash a smile. He liked being compared to his dad and he wished people would do it more often rather than compare him to… he glanced at the portrait of his mother hanging in the living room before shaking his head and turning his attention back to Steven.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“We're ready, Garnet.” Pearl informed Garnet. She nervously smiled at Twoie, but seemed to relax once she realized that he was no longer dressed as Pink Diamond.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Wait. You're going on a mission?”  Steven whined as he gripped Garnet’s arm.“Hold on! Don't leave me!” he teared up as he became more anxious. “At least tell me what's gonna happen with my lunch! Do I choke on a pickle?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Mm, you don't choke on a pickle.” Garnet attempted to reassure him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p><span>Steven</span> <span>clutched Garnet's arm tighter “That means something else happens with the pickle!”</span></p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Garnet! Shouldn't we be going?” Pearl asked still waiting on the warp pad next to Amethyst.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie smiled in relief as Garnet went to comfort Steven.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Steven, I can't be with you all the time. Just trust me when I say that you are in control.” She told Steven in a soothing voice. Steven smiled up at her appearing to have calmed down a bit.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Do not go on the roof! No matter what.” She warned him before she stepped on the warp pad and disappeared in a flash of light. Steven immediately tensed up again no doubt worried about going on the roof.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie sighed. This was going to be a long night.</span>
</p><p> </p><hr/><p>
  <span>Twoie attempted to distract Steven from his fears of the future by offering to play games with him, but Steven refused to do anything that he viewed as dangerous. So they both sat in silence as it started to rain. Twoie frowned when Steven flinched at the sound of thunder. He really wanted to help him, but the last time this had happened Garnet had comforted him. He couldn’t allow things to change. It had to stay the same so that his future would happen.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What could possibly happen to me on the roof?” Steven whimpered.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Before Twoie could answer the front door burst open startling Steven into action. He ran and quickly closed the door.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Okay. Calm down. Maybe I should just get a snack.” Steven said in an attempt to comfort himself. He gasped in fear. “But what if..!” he stared at the fridge in horror lost in his own imaginations.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie looked away unable to stand seeing Steven so scared. Garnet would be here soon and then things would be better. He shouldn’t change anything. This was the way things were supposed to be; the way they had to be.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Thunder clashed loudly, startling Steven and causing him to scream. He ran to the living room where the coffee table once was and curled up into a ball on the floor.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What's happening to me? I'm supposed to be…” He grabbed MC Bear Bear, who was still on the floor, and brought him close to his chest  “a Crystal Gem. I'm supposed to be a Crystal Gem!” Steven whimpered while tears streamed down his face.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie’s heart clenched painfully in his chest as a realization hit him like a ton of bricks; Steven was just a kid. A kid who so desperately wanted to gain the approval of his family; to live up to the memory of his mother. He glared at the painting of Rose Quartz that hung in the living room, looking over them as if to mock him. He looked back at Steven who was scared and confused. He thought about all the other horrible things that Steven would experience in the future, that he had experienced in the future. Those events were much scarier and much more dangerous than thunder. Was he really going to let Steven go through all those things?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Steven.” he said gently as he placed his hand on Steven’s back in what he hoped was a comforting way. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I…” He hesitated. He was afraid if changed the past too much then it would ruin his future. He was a coward. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Another clash of thunder hit causing Steven to shake violently in fear. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>That was the last straw for Twoie. He gathered up Steven in his lap and gave him a fierce hug. He didn’t care if he changed his future anymore. He needed to protect Steven to give him a better future.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Steven just because you’re afraid doesn’t mean you aren’t crystal gem.” he gently told him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You don’t understand!” Steven said as he shook his head into Twoie’s chest. “I’m not a kid anymore. I can’t be scared. Everyone’s waiting for me to be brave and strong like my mom.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Oh, Steven…” Twoie rubbed Steven’s back soothingly. He almost wanted to laugh; he spent his childhood desperately wanting to be like his mother and now he desperately worked to prove that he wasn’t his mother. That he wasn’t Pink Diamond. “You don’t have to be like her. You can be someone even better.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven sniffled as he glanced up at him. “But the gems they-”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“They love you because you're Steven not because they think you’re Rose Quartz.” Twoie sighed. He desperately wanted Steven to understand. He didn’t want him to commit the same mistakes that he did. “Steven I know it’s scary not knowing what will happen or what will hurt you and I know that you just want to impress the gems, but it's ok to be scared sometimes. It’s ok to ask for help, but most importantly you have to remember that you choose your own future.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I think I understand.” Steven told him as he dried his eyes. “I just really wanted to be grown up, like you.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“...like me?” Twoie was surprised. Why would Steven want to be like him? He was a coward. He was just going to let Steven suffer because he was afraid of changing the future.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“When you first came here you were able to summon mom's shield perfectly, you were strong enough to block one of Garnet’s punches, and you were smart enough to understand future vision without freaking out.” he looked frustrated. “I can’t do any of that. I’m just so… useless.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Steven.” Twoie said sternly, but Steven refused to meet his gaze. “Steven, look at me.” Steven hesitantly looked back at Twoie.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You’re not useless, ok?” he said gently. “You’re kind and generous and you always see the best in people.” Steven flushed and looked away not used to being complimented.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Look, I know that you want to get better at using your powers, but can’t beat yourself up like this. It’s not healthy.” Twoie hesitated for a moment before getting a determined look on his face. “If you want, I can help you master your powers.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven immediately perked up. “Really?” he asked excitedly as the rest of his fear left.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, really?” he smiled at him glad to seem him happy again.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>When Twoie next saw Garnet he and Steven were happily playing checkers.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Training Troubles</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Twoie has a bad dream and Steven begins his first day of training.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <em>
    <span>“I said enough, Pink!” Yellow’s shout harshly echoed throughout the room. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>He had decided that he would spend some time with Yellow that day and things had started off rather well. He even managed to get a small smile out of her. Then, they got to the topic of colonizing planets; he had once again refused and that had set her off. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>The way that she had so flippantly talked about exterminating life on a planet like it was a chore had made him feel sick. He had tried explaining to her why all life was precious and worth protecting, but she had merely shaken her head and laughed at him; that had set him off. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>He was getting really tired of being ignored and of pretending to be Pink Diamond. His voice had gradually gotten louder and louder and before he knew it he was shouting at her. His face was flushed red with anger and he could feel his heart pounding harder in his chest.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>“I am </span>
    <span>not</span>
    <span> Pink!” he shouted back equally as harsh, but regretted it the instant he saw her face. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Her pupils had shrunk to the size of pinpricks and her face contorted into a menacing snarl. She slowly stood up at her full height and he was jarringly reminded of just how much bigger she was than him. She could easily crush him if she wanted to and he would be powerless to stop her.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>“</span>
    <span>Pink</span>
    <span>.” she warned her tone promising punishment if he said the wrong thing. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>She was glaring at him with an intensity that would usually make him back down and apologize, but he was just so frustrated. Why couldn’t Yellow see that what she was doing was wrong? They kept telling him that he was a Diamond, but they refused to treat him as one. Why couldn’t they just listen to him for once? </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Pink. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Pink. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Pink. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>He was so sick of hearing that name. That's all that they had talked about since the moment he arrived on homeworld. He wasn’t Pink. Why was that so hard to understand?</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>He straightened his back and met her icy glare with one of his own. “My. Name. Is. </span>
    <span>Steven.</span>
    <span>” he slowly punctuated every word through gritted teeth. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>That was decidedly the wrong thing to say as moments later he was very suddenly and forcibly removed from his seat and thrust into Yellow Diamond’s hand. He steadied himself and struggled to stay upright as she began to angrily march somewhere.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>“Pink.” Yellow glared down at him, effectively silencing any future protests. “I thought we had moved past this, but if you insist on continuing to play this little game of yours then you leave me no choice.” She abruptly stopped walking as they approached the door to a room that he was all too familiar with. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>He suddenly wished that Blue was here. She was always the more lenient of the two Diamonds. She would at least humor him by listening to his arguments for equality and peace even though he was certain that she wasn’t convinced by them.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>“Stay in there and think about what you did!” </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>He was roughly thrown into the dark and empty room. He let out a grunt of pain as his back made contact with the cold marble that made up most of the room. He used his right hand to shakily push his body off the ground and attempted to stand. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>He despised the room he was currently in, but unfortunately it seemed to be Yellow’s favorite way to punish him when he ‘acted out’. The longest time he had been in the room was a whole week or what had felt like a week; he quickly learned that keeping track of time while in the room was near impossible. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>A week of silence, a week of darkness, a week of solitude with no one but his own thoughts to keep him company. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>His breathing started coming out in short erratic breaths. He didn’t want to be here. He couldn’t do this again. He frantically looked around the room for some sort of exit. He pushed himself up off the ground and attempted to make his way to the door, but was swiftly blocked by Yellow’s hand slamming down onto the floor near him which caused the room to quake and caused him to lose his balance and fall.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>“I’m a Diamond too! You can’t ju-” </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>“You say that you want to be treated like a Diamond yet you refuse to act like one!” </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>He glared up at Yellow Diamond, whose back was now turned toward him. He had been trying, but no matter what he did they still insisted on treating him like a petulant child. He was tempted to respond, but he knew that would only bring him more trouble. It was best if he didn’t say anything. Yellow was unreasonable when she was in one of her moods.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>“I will check in on you later, Pink.”</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>“Wait! No!” His arm was outstretched in front of him as he attempted to run towards the door before it could close, but he wasn’t fast enough. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>He was never fast enough.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>His body crumpled onto the cold floor as the sound of the doors closing echoed throughout the room. He knew from past experiences that once those doors were closed there was no way to get out unless one of the Diamonds, usually Blue, allowed him to. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>How long was she going to keep him in here? That was the worst part he decided, the waiting. He could be stuck in there for a few hours or a few days depending on the severity of his actions. From Yellow’s reaction he guessed it would most likely be a few days before he would be allowed to leave.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>“Let me out!’ he uselessly shouted at the empty room and was unsurprisingly met with a familiar silence. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>He once again felt the resentment he had toward his mother flare up. If only she had dealt with her problems instead of running away from them then he wouldn’t be stuck in this stupid room. Now he was left to pick up the pieces of the people she had hurt. It wasn’t fair! He didn’t do any of those things, but because he had her gem he was responsible. He has to fix her mistakes. That was his purpose. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>He let out a shout of frustration as his fists roughly pounded on the marble floor. They would be bruised later, but it didn’t matter he would just heal them before any of the gems saw. Right now the pain was a comforting feeling. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>“Let!” his fists were throbbing.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>“Me!” his knuckles were turning a nasty shade of purple.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>“Out!” he thought he felt something break.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>The room was suddenly enveloped in a pink glow as a hoarse scream left his throat.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Cracks rapidly began to appear as a small crater formed underneath him. He stared at his distorted reflection and gasped. His whole body was tinted with an eerie pink glow. He fearfully looked down at his trembling pink hand. He gripped his head. What was happening to him? </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>He looked at the massive crater that now surrounded him. Had he really done that? He attempted to take deep breaths in order to calm himself, but only succeeded in hyperventilating. He looked back at his hauntingly pink reflection and choked back a sob. What was wrong with him?  He squeezed his eyes shut in order to prevent his tears from falling.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>“Please…” he whimpered. “Let me out.”</span>
  </em>
</p>
<hr/>
<p>
  <span>Twoie jolted awake in the dead of night and frantically took in his surroundings. It was too dark. He needed to get out. His breath came out in slow and ragged puffs as he desperately wrestled against the blankets that held him captive. He struggled before falling onto the floor with a small thud. He felt his breath catch in his throat as he caught sight of the window. The sky was turning a beautiful soft orange as the morning slowly arrived. Twoie’s breathing calmed down as the presence of the sun made him realize that he was on earth and far away from the Diamonds.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven’s light snores reminded him that he was in the past. He slowly untangled himself from the blankets and got up from the floor. He was careful not to make too much noise as he didn’t want to risk waking Steven. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He stretched his back and winced as he felt it crack; sleeping on the couch was not doing any favors for his back. He glanced at the door to the temple. He wondered if he could sleep in his room in the temple. He was hesitant to do so when he first arrived because of how hostile the gems had been towards him, but they had been much friendlier as of late. He would bring up the topic later he decided as he got ready for the day.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>After his breakdown last night, Twoie had managed to convince Steven to play some games with him before sending him off to bed. During that same time he also managed to find out that Steven was thirteen years old and that they were hunting for Peridot which meant that they still had the cluster to deal with. He shuddered as he thought about the millions of gem shards suffering in the mantle of the planet.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He shook his head to rid himself of those unpleasant thoughts; that was a problem he would deal with later. Right now he busied himself with preparing breakfast for Steven. He took bites of an apple as he cooked. He hummed in satisfaction as the smell of french toast began to waft through the house.</span>
</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Whatcha up to, Twoie.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie jumped and quickly turned around and took a defensive stance. He instantly relaxed when he realized it was just Amethyst</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh! Amethyst, good morning.” he greeted her blushing slightly at his overreaction; luckily she didn’t comment on it. He was still a bit on edge because of his dream. “I’m just making some breakfast.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Smells good. What is it?” she asked as she peered over his shoulder in order to get a better look at the french toast.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie smiled, he should have known that the smell of food would attract Amethyst. She loved eating all foods and she even loved eating some things that probably shouldn’t be consumed like motor oil or soap. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s french toast with strawberries and blueberries” he told her as he checked on the french toast to make sure it didn’t burn.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“When did you learn to cook that? Or can you not tell me because it’ll blow up the timeline or something?” she jokingly asked.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie chuckled before answering. “Pearl taught me how to cook.” It was a fun activity that helped pass the time on homeworld. As much as he liked the fruit from the human zoo there was only so much he could eat before he got tired of it.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“How is Pearl in the future?” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Huh? What do you mean?” he looked up from the food to see Amethyst fiddling with her hair.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Ugh, it's just that she’s so…” she struggled to find the right words “uptight. I was just hoping that maybe she chilled out a bit in the future.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie frowned as he remembered that Amethyst and Pearl were currently in a fight because of him. Pearl and Garnet didn’t seem to want to tell Amethyst about Pink Diamond and it was clear to him that she had been hurt when she realized she was being kept in the dark.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“You guys get along way better in the future. I mean you still tease each other and stuff, but you guys don’t really fight anymore.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“What so Pearl can tolerate being around me in the future.” Amethyst said as she rolled her eyes. It was clear from her reaction that she did not believe him. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“No. She doesn’t </span>
  <em>
    <span>just</span>
  </em>
  <span> tolerate being around you” he told her seriously. “She </span>
  <em>
    <span>likes</span>
  </em>
  <span> being around you, loves it even. You guys are always laughing and joking around.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Ha! yeah right.” Amethyst laughed and shook her head. “Pearl laughing and having a good time. That's a good one, but for real what's she like?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m serious, Amethyst. Pearl’s changed a lot. There was this one time when she took us all to a rock show and the poli-” he was interrupted by a sleepy looking Steven.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Are you guys making breakfast?” he yawned as he rubbed the last vestiges of sleep from his eyes.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Morning Steman.” Amethyst said as she ruffled his hair.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Good morning Steven.” he glanced over his shoulder and flashed him a small smile. “I’m just finishing up the french toast.” he grabbed a plate and began to place the french toast alongside the freshly cut fruit.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh! I love french toast! Can I have some?” he excitedly asked as he took a seat at the kitchen island.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Of course I made it for you after all.” Twoie placed the plate of food in front of Steven and poured a generous amount of syrup over the french toast. It wasn’t the healthiest, but Twoie knew that Steven really loved sweet foods.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“What? Really? Thank you!” he said happily as he eagerly began to dig into his breakfast.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah if you’re serious about training then you need to eat more than just donuts for breakfast.” Twoie told him as he remembered how unhealthy his diet used to he. Pearl was the only one who knew how to cook; it was something that she enjoyed doing even if she did not like to eat. She would occasionally make him breakfast, but the gems were always busy so it was a rare treat. He was sure that if he asked his dad that he would come and make him breakfast, but he didn’t want to bother him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“You guys are training?” Amethyst asked as she not so discreetly swiped a couple of fruits off of  Steven’s plate.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah!” Steven’s excited shout was muffled by the food in his mouth. He swallowed before continuing. “Twoie promised that he would teach me how to summon mom’s shield.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s right, you summoned Rose’s shield against Garnet when you first got here. So I guess that means you finally figured out how to do it in the future.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah and I can do loads more stuff then just summon </span>
  <em>
    <span>my </span>
  </em>
  <span>shield.” Twoie told Amethyst as he emphasized the fact that it was his shield. It wasn’t his mom’s shield and it was definitely not Pink Diamond’s shield. It was his shield. If she noticed his slight irritation she didn’t comment on it.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Woah! Like what?!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah can you fly or something.” Amethyst jokingly asked him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Well…” he considered the question. Did floating count as flying?</span>
  <span>
    <br/>
    <br/>
  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Wait, seriously?” Amethyst asked incredulously. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I can fly in the future! That's so cool! Do you think I can do that now?” Steven asked him as he got up from his chair and began to excitedly jump up and down in, what Twoie thought was, an adorable attempt to fly</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I mean technically It’s more floating than flying, but yeah I can.” he smirked as he saw a surprised look flash across Amethyst’s face. Even though he was no longer a kid it still felt good to impress the gems. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“What else can you do? Can you shoot lasers out of your eyes? Oh! Do you have superspeed?! Can you turn invisible?!” Steven had stars in his eyes as he imagined himself with hundreds of spectacular powers.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Heh nothing like that, but I’ll tell you all about your other abilities when I think you're ready to learn them.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Aww, man.” Steven pouted.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“If you’re finished eating then you should go get ready so that we can get started on your training.” Twoie told Steven who immediately perked up at the prospect of training.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Is it cool if I join you guys?” Amethyst asked.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah! You should come with us that way we can all have superpowers!” Steven enthusiastically answered.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t know if there’s anything I can teach you, but you’re welcome to join if you want.” Twoie told her. He was surprised that she would want to tag along at all. Amethyst tended to get bored easily and for someone who loved fighting so much she had a surprising dislike for training.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“That's fine. I just really don’t want to be around those two right now.” she gestured toward the temple door with her head.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Huh? Are you guys fighting or something?” Steven asked clearly bothered by the thought that his loved ones might be upset with one another.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Nah, don’t worry about it Steman.” Amethyst swiftly replied in an attempt to reassure Steven.  “Pearl’s just being Pearl and Garnet is…” she trailed off.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Garnet’s what?” Steven prompted her to finish her sentence.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Nothing, nevermind.” Amethyst shook her head and plastered on a large smile that Twoie recognized was more for Steven’s sake than from her actually being happy. “Let’s just focus on getting you some x-ray vision.” she cheerfully told him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“You mean laser vision?” Steven corrected her.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, sure whatever. So where are we going to train at Twoie?” Amethyst asked him eager to change the subject.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie smiled. “I know just the place.”</span>
</p>
<hr/>
<p>
  <span>Steven stumbled a bit, but managed to keep himself steady as he exited the warp stream. He smiled a bit; he was getting better at warping to places. He glanced to his side just in time to see Twoie gracefully land on his toes as the warp stream disappeared. Steven frowned as he realized that Twoie was better than him at warping. He knew that he shouldn't be surprised by now since Twoie was great at everything, but it still shocked him to see how amazing Twoie could be. He had a lot to learn.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh man the ancient sky arena, the last time we were here was when Pearl got poofed.” Amethyst commented as she took in the view.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, she was in her gem for so long before she came back. I really missed her.” Steven frowned as he recalled the weeks in which Pearl had been gone. He saw Pearl get stabbed and disappear. He thought that she had died because of him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Don’t worry Steven we’re just going to be summoning shields today. No one’s going to get hurt.” Twoie reassured him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah Steven don’t worry about it so much. Pearl’s not even here she’s safe back at the temple.” Amethyst said which succeeded in calming him down. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, you’re right. Everything will be just fine.” Steven gave them a small smile.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>When Steven had agreed to train with Twoie he thought there would be more fighting. He imagined it would be like one of the training montages he saw in the Loney Blade movie’s. He hadn’t expected to start off the training session with breathing exercises and stretches, not that he minded because he was sure that Twoie could beat him in a fight easily. Amethyst quickly made her way over to the seats in the arena when she realized no fighting would take place.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Just take a deep breath, clear your thoughts, then just visualize your shield and…” Twoie’s arm briefly flashed Pink as his mom’s shield materialized.  “it should appear.” Twoie said as he flicked his arm and made the shield disappear.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven felt his eyes widen in amazement. Twoie made it look so easy.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok, I can do this.” he told himself as he took a deep breath and cleared his thoughts like Twoie had taught him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He closed his eyes and imagined his mom’s beautiful pink shield then he imagined that shield appearing on his own arm like it had appeared on Twoie’s moments ago.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He hesitantly opened his eyes after a few seconds and was disappointed when he saw nothing appear on his arm.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Hmm… try standing like this.” Twoie suggested as he widened his stance.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven fumbled as he quickly tried to imitate Twoie’s stance. How did he get his foot to look like that? He almost fell as he adjusted his footing only to be caught by Twoie. He blushed as he heard Amethyst laugh at his mistake. Twoie helped him align his feet in a perfect defensive stance.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He took a deep breath and focused on summoning his mom’s shield again. He glanced down at his empty arm in disappointment.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Maybe try flicking your arm like this.” Twoie instructed him as he demonstrated another flawless shield summon.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven nodded and tried once more. He hopefully glanced down at his arm. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Nothing. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He was starting to get frustrated at himself. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Shield activate!” he yelled at his arm in the hopes that something would happen.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Shield powers go!” he shook his arm around.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Come on at least sparkle a bit or something.” he sighed in disappointment when nothing happened. How was he supposed to help the gems if he couldn’t even summon his shield?</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t think that’s working.” Amethyst told him from the audience stands. Steven blushed in embarrassment. Great, now he made himself look silly in front of Amethyst. If she told the other gems about this they would think that he was useless.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He looked towards Twoie for guidance.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok, so the arm flicking didn’t work.” he snapped his fingers as he came to a realization. “Try to imagine that a monster is attacking you and then try and summon your shield.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Good idea.” he told Twoie. “Let me try…” he said as he attempted to imagine a terrifying monster. He imagined the monster running towards him getting closer and closer until… </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He opened his eyes and glanced down at his arm.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Still nothing.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Nothing’s happening.” he told Twoie sadly. Maybe he just wasn’t strong enough to summon his mom’s shield.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Don’t worry about it, Steven. Just try again.” Twoie attempted to encourage him as he flashed him a smile which only made Steven feel worse about himself. Twoie was always so patient with him and all he did was mess up.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah maybe this time something interesting will happen.” Amethyst said reminding Steven that he had most likely disappointed Amethyst as well.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I can’t do this.” he said as he ran toward the direction of the warp pad. He thought he heard Twoie shout at Amethyst, but he was so embarrassed that he didn’t really pay any attention.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Steven, wait!” Twoie shouted as he chased after him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven ignored him and increased his speed. He didn’t want to be here anymore. He collapsed on top of the warp pad and attempted to activate it, but it didn’t work. Steven furiously wiped at his eyes in order to prevent himself from crying.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Great now I can’t even get this warp pad to work. Why am I so useless?” he sniffled as he smacked the warp pad in an attempt to get it to activate.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Steven, what happened? Where are you going?” Twoie asked him when he finally caught up to him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Home. This isn’t working.” he looked up at Twoie. “I can’t do this.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Don’t say that. It’s only the first day of training. It’s ok if you can't summon your shield yet, but you can’t give up.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s easy for you to say! You can summon mom’s shield, and you can fly, and you probably have laser vision and I can’t even summon her shield once. You’re so much better than me.” he angrily wiped at his eyes. He wasn’t a little kid anymore; he shouldn’t be crying.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Steven, we’re literally the same person.” Twoie said as he sat down on the warp pad next to him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>That made Steven pause and think. He knew that they were the same person, but he was nothing like Twoie. Twoie was strong and cool and useful. He was just so… useless, but if Twoie was him from the future then maybe he wouldn't always be useless.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s just you make it seem so easy. What if I never learn to master my powers?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I know you will.” Twoie told him with such confidence that he almost believed it himself. “I didn’t learn how to consistently summon my shield until much later so don’t feel bad if you can’t do it right away.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Really? How did you learn to summon mom’s shield?” Steven asked him as he attempted to imagine Twoie struggling with anything.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I…” Twoie trailed off as he attempted to think of an answer. “that’s it!” he shouted as he stood up.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Huh?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“My powers.” Twoie looked at him. “Our powers are tied to our emotions. My shield only appears when I experience feelings of protectiveness.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Feelings of protectiveness?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, come on let’s head back and I’ll show you” Twoie offered him his hand.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven reached out to accept his outstretched hand, but hesitated. “What if it doesn’t work?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Then we’ll figure out something that does.” Twoie said and Steven believed him. He grabbed onto Twoie’s hand and stood up.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven griped Twoie’s hand a bit harder as they approached the inside of the sky arena. His eyes were still slightly red from when he had been crying earlier. He just hoped that Amethyst didn’t notice; he had embarrassed himself enough today.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Steven, I want you to imagine that a scary monster is charging towards you.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I already trie-”</span>
  <span></span>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But this time I want you to imagine that one of the gems, or dad, or Connie is standing behind you. Your shield is the only thing stopping the monster from hurting them.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok, I’ll try.” he said as he closed his eyes.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>At first he tried to imagine the gems standing behind him, but he had a hard time believing it because he knew that if an actual monster charged at him then he would be the one hiding behind the gems. They wouldn’t need his help to defeat a monster. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Then, he tried to imagine his dad behind him, but he knew that his dad would never go anywhere near a monster. He always avoided ‘magic stuff’ as he called it.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Finally he imagined Connie behind him. They were probably on the beach in front of his house. Maybe they were reading Unfamiliar Familiar together or maybe they were just talking then all of a sudden a monster emerges from the ocean. It looks angry and its charging right at them. He wants to shout at the gems for help, but he knows that they won't make it in time. He looks over at Connie who looks frightened; he puts his arm in front of his body and takes a defense stance. He feels his arm tingle just as the monster reaches them.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven opened his eyes and was greeted by the pleasant sight of his mom’s shield resting on his arm.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I!… “ he looked at his arm in disbelief. “I did It!” he joyfully exclaimed.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Good job Steven! I knew you could do it.” Twoie praised him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven beamed at him. He couldn’t believe it. He  really did it! He felt so happy.! He couldn’t wait until he told the rest of the gems about this. They would be so proud of him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, and it only took all morning.” Amethyst added while chuckling a bit.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Amethyst.</span>
  </em>
  <span>” Twoie’s voice took on a tone that Steven had never heard from him before.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“What? I’m just teasing. Lighten up a bit you’re starting to sound like Pearl.” Steven felt his smile shrink a bit at that comment. He didn’t like it when Amethyst made fun of Pearl.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Amethyst, can I talk to you.” Twoie stole a glance in his direction. “Alone.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Ugh, fine!” Amethyst stomped over to a corner in the sky arena muttering something under her breath that suspiciously sounded like “Pearl jr.” to Steven.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Steven,” Twoie gave him a small smile which he eagerly returned. “I’m very proud of you. You managed to summon your shield on the first day of training.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven felt his face flush with pride. “I couldn’t have done it without your help. You're a great teacher.” he complimented Twoie.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“And you’re a great student.” Twoie said as he gently patted his head. “Listen, Steven why don’t you go wait by the warp pad while me and Amethyst talk.” Steven opened his mouth to protest, but was cut off by Twoie. “It shouldn’t take long and we can all go get some fry bits after to celebrate.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven wanted to ask him what he and Amethyst were going to talk about and why he couldn't listen, but he ultimately decided not to. Twoie had this look on his face that Steven recognized as the look that all adults got when they were really serious. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven nodded and made his way over to where the warp pad was. He paused as he reached the top of the steps that lead to the warp pad. He glanced back toward the main part of the arena where he could faintly make out Twoie and Amethyst talking. He knew that he should probably listen to Twoie, but he just couldn’t help himself. He was really curious about what they were talking about. They sounded upset. If he could just figure out what was wrong then maybe he could help.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He slowly inched his way towards the direction where he heard their voices. He not so subtly hid behind a pillar, but luckily for him it seemed like they were so engrossed in their conversation that they failed to notice his presence.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I said enough, Amethyst.” Twoie looked very angry as he pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. “Steven’s waiting for us.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“No!” Amethyst angrily replied back. “just because you’re not as good of a teacher you thou-”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I said</span>
  <em>
    <span> enough</span>
  </em>
  <span>!” Twoie angrily shouted as his whole body turned a vibrant pink. Steven felt the pillar shake next to him. Small cracks appeared under Twoie’s feet. Amethyst was shocked into silence.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Twoie?” he asked suddenly nervous. He flinched as he made eye contact with a very angry looking Twoie.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He was glowing pink and his pupils had taken on a strange shape. He looked so angry that were it anyone else other than Twoie, Steven would be scared for his safety. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“S-steven!” Twoie yelled out nervously as he looked down at his body in shock. Steven saw him frantically shake his hands as the pink left his body and his eyes returned to normal. “What are you doing here? I thought I told you to wait by the warp pad.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Why were you guys fighting?” Steven asked ignoring Twoie’s question. He glanced over to Amethyst who still looked as shocked as Steven felt.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“We weren’t fighting. We were just…” Twoie paused as he let out a tired sigh. Steven finally noticed the bags under Twoie’s eyes; he looked exhausted. “Talking.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Amethyst blinked before her face returned to normal. “Y-yeah we were just talking.” she nervously repeated as she began to walk towards the location of the warp pad</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Let’s go Steven.” Twoie began to walk behind Amethyst all while refusing to make eye contact.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven frowned, but followed Twoie nonetheless. Something was clearly wrong, but Twoie and Amethyst would not tell him.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. On The Run</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Steven and Amethyst attempt to be No Home Boys while Pearl and Twoie have a conversation.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>“Amethyst!” Pearls frustrated shout echoed throughout the enormous room.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She had been informed by Garnet that they were urgently needed at the galaxy warp. Garnet had foreseen a large group of robonoids attempting to repair the warp pads located there. That had immediately sent Pearl into panic mode; if the galaxy warp were to be repaired then homeworld gems would once again have access to the earth. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Garnet had gone ahead to the galaxy warp; she would be able to fend off the robonoids for a while, but would soon get overwhelmed by their sheer numbers without any back up. So, Pearl had been entrusted with the task of finding Amethyst and bringing her to the galaxy warp.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Amethy-” her shout was cut off as a ball hit her roughly on the head. It must have fallen off one of the many precariously balanced piles of junk that Amethyst kept in her room. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Ugh! How does she ever find anything in this mess?” She angrily wondered aloud as she rounded another corner only to be met with the sight of more piles.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl sighed in frustration. At this rate she was never going to find Amethyst.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Amethyst!” She shouted. “Ame-”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Ugh, what do you want?” She turned toward the direction of the disgruntled voice. “Can’t you see I’m busy.” Amethyst said from atop a smaller pile of junk.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She was lying down with her hands behind her head; expression obscured by a brightly colored magazine that rested atop her face.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Amethyst</span>
  </em>
  <span>!” She yelled furious. Had Amethyst been ignoring her earlier? Amethyst was close enough that she should have been able to hear her. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What!?” She angrily responded as she sat up and the magazine fell off her face. “I can’t even relax anymore without having someone on my case.” Amethyst complained finally making eye contact with her.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl was taken aback by the sadness she saw on her face. Her eyes were puffy and red. Had Amethyst been crying? Pearl frowned pushing her anger aside for a moment as she focused her attention on Amethysts disheveled state. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Amethysts is something wrong?” she asked concerned.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Why are you here? Did you lose another sword or something?” she asked ignoring her question. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl frowned at her lack of response, but pushed her worries aside. They didn’t have time for this; they needed to get to the galaxy warp.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Its the galaxy warp. Garnet needs our help, if we don’t hurr-” her explanation was cut off by an annoyed Amethyst. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Then stop talking and let’s go already.” She huffed as she sauntered off towards the direction of the exit.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl’s frown deepened as she quietly followed behind Amethyst.</span>
</p><p> </p><hr/><p> </p><p>
  <span>When they arrived Garnet was struggling to contain the large group of robonoids; they may not have been very strong, but they were annoyingly elusive.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“To your right!” Garnet shouted as she busied herself with containing a sizable group of robonoids. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Garnet did not want to destroy them because she hoped that they held some answers as to what Peridot was sent here to do. Pearl assisted in containing the robonoids by knocking them on the ground with her spear before kicking them towards Garnet.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Don’t let them get away!” Garnet ordered as she focused on preventing the robonoids escape.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Oh no you don’t!” Amethyst hollered at the small group of robonoids that managed to evade Garnet and that were rapidly approaching the warp pads.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She promptly summoned two whips and began to wildy attack the group. Her lack of restraint caused several of the robonoids to be destroyed.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“There’s just one left!” Amethyst warned as she undertook the task of wrangling the group of robonoids.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’m on it!” Pearl replied as she leapt up into the air and charged in the direction where the robonoid was heading.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The robonoid scurried toward one of the larger warp pads in the area and quickly went to work repairing it. She swiftly summoned two spears and sent them hurtling towards the robonoid. The first spear missed its target. The second spear managed to graze the surface of the robonoids body succeeding in throwing it off balance; it fell on its side and struggled to reorient itself as she landed next to it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Was that all of them all?” She asked Garnet as she picked up the still struggling robonoid and sent it flying towards the group of robonoids that Garnet managed to contain.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yes, that was the last one.” Garnet replied as she gathered up the group of deactivated robonoids in her arms.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Ugh, what’s in these things?” Amethyst questioned as she crushed a small group of the robonoids with her whip. They exploded and left behind a pile of blue sludge.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Amethyst!” she reprimanded her. “We need to contain these things not destroy them.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Chillax P, we still got loads of these little guys.” she gestured toward the small group of robonoids she held captive in her arms.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl let out a sigh of frustration, but ultimately decided not to respond. It was clear that Amethyst was not handling the situation with the seriousness that it deserved. If Peridot succeeded in reactivating the warp pads then there was no telling what homeworld would send their way. The thought sent a shiver through her body. She had spent thousands of years protecting the earth and she would not let Peridot ruin everything that she had fought for; everything that Rose had fought for.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“We should bring the robonoids back to the temple.” Garnet announced as she walked over to the warp pad.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yes, let’s do that.” Pearl agreed as she took the group of robonoids from Amethysts’ arms. Amethysts rolled her eyes in annoyance, but strangely did not argue with her. She did, however, keep one of the robonoids which she began to eagerly inspect.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh man, Steven is going to love these things.” Amethyst chuckled as she stepped onto the warp pad.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Amethyst, we shouldn’t let these things near Steven. They could be dangerous.” she warned as the warp pad activated.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“C’mon you saw those things back there, they’re harmless.” Amethyst flippantly told her. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Pearl is right, Amethyst, until we learn more about Peridot and her intentions we shouldn’t take any unnecessary risks.” Garnet wisely advised them.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Ugh, whatever.” Was Amethysts only reply as the warp stream brought them to their destination.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You're back!” Steven greeted them happily. “Hey, it's those things from the Galaxy Warp. Why'd you bring them home?” he asked.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“We can't have them reactivating and fixing the Homeworld Warp.” she explained as she glanced over at the couch where Twoie was seated.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She flashed him an awkward smile as a greeting which he hesitantly returned. Truth be told Pearl had been avoiding being around Twoie, choosing instead to focus on repairing the gem artifact that brought him here not that she had been making much progress with it. The technology was confusing and extremely outdated.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She felt guilty as she looked back and forth between Steven and Twoie. She didn’t hate Twoie, he was Steven after all and she loved Steven, but there was no denying that she felt uneasy around him. When he first arrived he had been dressed as… Pink and that had terrified her. He claimed that he was dressed like that for a play, an explanation that she had eagerly accepted at the time, but she was still unsure of his intentions.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Suddenly she heard laughing to her side and looked over just in time to see Amethysts attempt to crush a robonoid. “Hey Steven, check this out!” she laughed as she squeezed the robonoid harder and harder until it burst. “Kabloosh!” she exclaimed as the blue sludge went flying everywhere.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She let out a yelp of surprise as she accidently let all the robonoids she had in her arms fall carelessly onto the floor. They made a clinking noise before they rolled all over the floor near the warp pad. She felt her anger rise as she realized that she was also drenched in the sludge. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span> “Amethyst, please!” She glared at Amethyst who merely stared back at her innocently.“This is serious! We need to understand these things, not squash them. If Homeworld Gems are trying to return to Earth…” she felt her panic rise once more as she imagined all the horrible things that homeworld could have planned for the earth. “They have to be stopped!” she fearfully yelled.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Pearl, calm down. We're still cut off. The Earth is safe.” Garnet said calmly which helped Pearl relax as she remembered that they have been able to thwart all of Peridot’s attempts to repair the homeworld warp.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Safe from what? What do the Homeworld Gems want to do?” Steven innocently asked her.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl stiffened and uncertainty looked towards Garnet for guidance. She took a moment to collect her thoughts before explaining the situation to Steven in terms that hopefully would not alarm him. She snuck a glance at Twoie who was intently watching the conversation unfold from his spot on the couch. She wondered how much he knew about homeworld. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Wait a sec, so that means…” he paused and his eyes lit up in excitement as he came to a realization. “we're just like the No Home Boys!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“The what?” She questioned confused at his proclamation but relieved that he took her explanation well.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“The No Home Boys!” He eagerly told her as he began to explain a strange series of human novels that he enjoyed.  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Steven, we are not like the No Home Boys.” she gestured towards the house surrounding them. “We are literally standing in your home right now.” she turned to follow Garnet into the temple, but was stopped by Twoie’s voice.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Wait, Pearl.” He said standing up from his spot on the couch.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She froze and hesitantly turned to face him. She had been hoping to avoid him altogether.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I wanted to talk to you,” he said as he approached her.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I have not had much luck repairing the artifact that brought you here.” She blurted out nervously assuming that he would want to ask her about that. “I’m sorry it’s just that these robonoids are becoming a time consuming nuisance.” She hurriedly explained.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What?” His eyebrows scrunched together in confusion before his eyes lit up in realization. “Oh! No, that’s not what I wanted to talk to you about.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Huh? Then wha-” she attempted to ask before she was interrupted by an excited Steven.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Twoie! Twoie!” He shouted as he rushed over to where they were talking.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl let out a sigh of relief at Steven’s presence. She couldn't help but feel anxious when she was alone with him. He pulled along with him an uncomfortable looking Amethyst who was preoccupied with staring at the floor. Pearl attempted to make eye contact with her, but was unsuccessful. She felt her worry grow at Amethysts continued strange behavior.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You don’t have to yell Steven I’m not that far away.” Twoie replied as he glanced at Amethyst.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They briefly made eye contact before they both looked away. Pearl could practically feel the tension in the room increase as they continuously ignored each other's presence. Had something happened between them?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’m going to be a No Home Boy with Amethyst.” Steven eagerly announced either unfazed or unaware of the tension. “You should come with us. It’ll be fun!” Steven hopefully looked between Twoie and Amethyst.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie sent Steven what Pearl assumed was a smile, but what looked more like a grimace. He stole a quick glance in Amethysts direction before refocusing his attention on Steven. Pearl frowned, from what little she had seen of Twoie and Amethysts interactions she had assumed that they got along, but it was clear to her that something was wrong.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I think I’ll pass on this adventure Steven. I’ve got some…” he paused as he fumbled for an excuse. “stuff I need to take care of here.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What!? Don’t you want to be a No Home Boy?” Steven questioned disappointment apparent in his voice.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“C'mon Steven let’s just go.” Amethyst impatiently complained as she began to lightly tug on Steven’s arm.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Maybe next time.” Twoie said in an attempt to console Steven.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What about you Pearl?” Steven asked, turning his hopeful gaze onto her.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“This is </span>
  <em>
    <span>Pearl</span>
  </em>
  <span> we’re talking about she doesn’t do fun.” Amethyst stated matter-of-factly. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A comment like that would ordinarily irk Pearl and it did, but she willed herself to appear unfazed by it. Amethyst was most likely attempting to goad her into an argument. Something which was not uncommon when she was upset.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’ll pass, but thank you for the offer Steven.” She politely declined his invitation and sent him an apologetic smile.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“See, told ya.” Amethyst said smugly. “Now let’s go pack some stuff for the road.” she said as she dragged Steven toward his bedroom</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Oh! Can we pack our stuff in bindles?” he excitedly asked her. “Then we’ll be exactly like the No Home Boys.” He eagerly followed behind her.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Whatever Amethyst said in response to Steven’s question Pearl did not hear as their voices became harder to discern the further they walked away.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Pack extra food!” Twoie shouted towards the direction of Steven’s bedroom. “Also if you see a racoon don’t get too close to it!” he warned.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She felt her eyebrow raise at his strange advice, but figured it probably had something to do with Twoie being from the future. She was not unfamiliar with cryptid pieces of advice; she had been friends with Garnet for thousands of years after all. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“We can go talk in my room-” He turned to face her. “-if that’s ok with you of course” he nervously asked her for permission. “I mean I know that it’s technically Steven’s room, but I don’t think he’ll mind.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yes, well it is also your room. You are still Steven after all even if you have grown.” she reminded him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, I guess it is.” he smiled brightly at her and for a moment Pearl truly felt like she was talking to Steven which was silly given that Twoie </span>
  <em>
    <span>was </span>
  </em>
  <span>Steven, but they behaved so differently that it was easy to forget.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie approached the temple door which slowly began to open in response to the glow of his gem. He walked into the room and she followed closely behind him. Her anxiety returned when she heard the door close behind them and she realized that they were truly alone. She scanned the empty room in a bid to distract herself from her concerns. Without Rose the room had reverted back to its default state of aimlessly drifting pink clouds. It was a surreal experience to see it so empty. The last time she had been here was a few weeks before Rose had… disappeared. They had been talking about the future and she had broken down when the realization that Rose would no longer be around finally hit her. She turned her attention back towards Twoie who had been watching her intently.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It’s so empty without her.” she confessed. “Your mother would recreate the most beautiful places-” she smiled as she recalled some of the more elaborate recreations.“-it was never the same place twice.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, that sounds like her.” he said quietly. “I don’t think I can make the room as beautiful as she made it, but I can at least make it so that it doesn’t look so empty.” He told her as he busied himself with transforming the room.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The formless pink clouds had taken the shape of a familiar yet different looking house. There was no doubt in Pearl’s mind that they were standing in a recreation of the beach house just outside the temple door. There were slight differences between the two houses the most notable being an upstairs addition indicated by a set of stairs located where Steven’s bedroom usually was. The kitchen island was also gone replaced by a dinner table. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie walked over to the living room before suddenly and unexpectedly lying down on the couch. He stretched out his limbs and let out a content sigh before closing his eyes. Pearl’s brow furrowed in confusion. Was he sleeping? </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Twoie?” she questioned as she approached his resting figure.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie quickly shot up into a sitting position startling Pearl. “Sorry,” he told her. “It’s just I forgot how comfortable these clouds could feel.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She nodded unsure of how to respond to his strange behavior. Upon closer inspection of his face she noticed that he had bags under his eyes. Had he not been getting enough sleep?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Do you want to sit down?” he asked her as he scooted over to the far end of the couch. He gestured towards the now freed up space on the couch.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She once again nodded before taking a seat on the couch. She waited for Twoie to begin the conversation, but he appeared to be gathering his thoughts. As the silence between them stretched on Pearl glanced over at Twoie only to be shocked by his resemblance to Rose. She had always been aware of the similarities that Steven shared with his mother, but they were even more pronounced on Twoie. The shape of his nose was exactly like his mother’s, his head of hair had only become curlier with age, and his eyes seemed to sparkle even as he was deep in thought. She thought if she squinted hard enough she could almost see Rose sitting next to her instead of Twoie.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A frown made its way onto her face as she focused on the manner in which he was seated. While it was certainly true that Steven was a well mannered child, something that she took great pride in, he had never been overly concerned with following etiquette. That made the way in which Twoie carried himself especially strange, but it was also eerily familiar. His feet were planted firmly on the ground, his back was straight, his shoulders were squared, and he exuded a regal aura. Even his hands were folded neatly on his lap exactly like… Pink. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl blinked and her eyes widened in fear when in Twoie’s place was Pink. She was smiling softly at her. Her lips were moving, she was speaking to her. The sounds were faint and muted; her voice was too deep. She looked concerned.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Pearl?” she questioned softly concern evident in her voice. She placed a gentle hand on her shoulder.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She flinched, startled. “Yes, my Dia-” she clamped her hand over her mouth mortified at what she was about to say.</span>
</p><p> </p><p><span>She blinked as her vision cleared to reveal a distressed Twoie. For a moment she had thought that Twoie was</span> <span>her. The way he carried himself coupled with the fact that he had arrived dressed as Pink must have caused her imagination to run wild. She looked over at Twoie and was surprised when instead of confusion she saw a look of understanding fall over his face. He grimaced and she thought that he almost looked guilty but of what Pearl could not tell.</span></p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I wanted to talk about Amethyst.” he said ignoring her strange outburst and refusing to meet her gaze.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Amethyst?” she repeated confused but grateful for the change of subject. “Did she do something wrong?” she asked as she recalled their tense interaction from earlier.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“She hasn’t done anything yet, bu-”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What do you mean </span>
  <em>
    <span>yet</span>
  </em>
  <span>?” She interrupted him as she anxiously pondered what Amethyst could do. “Will she do something in the future?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What? No! Well.. kinda, but that’s not what I wanted to tell you either.” he fumbled over his words. “Oh stars, how do I put this…” he paused as he gathered his thoughts. “you need to fix your relationship with Amethyst.” he bluntly told her.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Fix my relationship with Amethyst? What do you mean?” She asked offended by his comment.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Your constant fighting is not healthy and it's not good for the team.” he told her gently.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I would not need to argue with her if she would just take things seriously. Her little outbursts always put us in danger and she can be so… infuriating. She is the one who is always acting out.” she explained in an attempt to defend herself. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“She’s only acting out because she thinks you hate her.” he told her slowly as if he were speaking to a child.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What? No!” she shook her head unwilling to even humor his absurd claim. “We may have our-” she grimaced as she thought of all the shouting matches they had over the years.“-disagreements, but I don’t hate Amethyst.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Does she know that?” he asked her calmly.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I…” she hesitated as she recalled earlier in that day when she had asked Amethyst if something was wrong; she had been ignored. Amethyst had been crying by herself and had not bothered to seek her out. Did Amethysts not feel comfortable enough to confide in her? “Of course she does!” she exclaimed not as certain as before. Pearl often made it a point to reprimand and lecture Amethyst, but she only did so because she cared about her. Amethyst had always been adventurous but with Rose gone she had become reckless.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Pearl, do you think Amethyst is a mistake because of where she was made?” Twoie continued asking her questions that made her increasingly uncomfortable.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Where she was made…” she repeated. He did not say where she was from but rather where she was made. That meant that he was aware that gems were made, something that she had not told Steven. “You know about th-”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“The kindergarten?” He finished for her. “Yeah I know about them.” His eyes glazed over and his face took on a wistful expression. “I learned about them a long time ago.” he paused as if remembering something. “You didn’t answer my question.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I do </span>
  <em>
    <span>not</span>
  </em>
  <span> think she is a mistake-” she looked Twoie straight in the eyes willing him to see her honesty. “-she is just the byproduct of… a mistake.” she trailed off as she realized what she was saying and how horrible it sounded. “That’s not what I meant!” she hastily spouted as she struggled to find the words to explain herself. “I… I-”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Pearl, I know you don’t think she’s a mistake,” he mercifully stopped her from making a fool of herself. “but that’s not the way she sees it. The kindergarten was her home and when you say stuff about how the kindergarten is a horrible place… well, it's hard not to take it personally especially since you two are always at each other’s throats.”   </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I…” she held her head in her hands as her face flushed with shame. “does she really believe that I hate her?” She timidly asked afraid to hear the answer.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“She thinks you're embarrassed of her, that you think she’s just a big mistake.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I just never thought of the kindergarten as her.” She looked up at him. “I thought she knew that… she needs to know that.” she declared as she was filled with a new sense of determination.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She stood up from the couch and began to make her way out of the temple. She needed to find Amethyst and apologize. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“She will, but right now she’s busy being a No Home Boy with Steven.” He said sympathetically as he placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I will just go ask Garnet where I can find her.” she brushed past him, undeterred and continued to head towards the exit.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I know where they are,-” she opened her mouth to ask him about their whereabouts. “-but it's best if we let them spend some time together.” he flashed her an apologetic smile. “In the meantime…” he rubbed the back of his neck nervously. “Do you want to hang out?” </span>
</p><p> </p><hr/><p> </p><p>
  <span>When Twoie had pulled Pearl aside for a conversation he had expected her to react negatively and while she did get defensive she also was surprisingly receptive to his criticisms. It was part of the reason he had decided to talk to her instead of Amethyst; that and the fact that his relationship with Amethyst was strained at the moment.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Are you ready, Twoie?” Pearl asked him as she took an offensive stance. Her spear gleamed threateningly under the sun.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>After their discussion Twoie had offered to spend some time with Pearl. He had been afraid that she would not want to be around him. He saw the way that Garnet and Pearl acted around him; they would avoid him if he was not with Steven. It hurt him when they did that, but he understood why they would feel uneasy around him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Ready.” he informed her as he widened his stance and debated to himself whether he should make the first move or not.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He had suggested they spar at the sky arena. Pearl had been hesitant to accept his offer at first because she did not think him a capable sword fighter, but after many reassurances on his part she eventually relented and agreed. The conversation was awkward and stilted at first because Pearl still felt slightly uncomfortable around him. Twoie had sensed this and began asking her questions about her weapon collection, which he knew that she cherished, and conversation had flowed more freely after that. She had been holding back in the first couple of sparring matches, but once she deemed him a competent opponent she had begun to act more aggressively.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Focus!” Pearl warned as she rushed him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The muscles in his arm shook as he struggled to push back her spear. He redoubled his efforts and was rewarded when Pearl relented enough to give him an exit. He jumped backwards to give himself some room to work with. He quickly went on the offensive and began to charge at Pearl. Seeing this, Pearl instantly raised her spear and was able to successfully stop his attack. She roughly pushed her spear against his sword with enough force to send him back a few feet. He quickly took on a defensive stance when he noticed Pearl barrelling towards him</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Excellent form Twoie!” Pearl praised as he narrowly avoided getting skewered by her spear. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie smiled as he felt beads of sweat roll off his forehead. It had been such a long time since he and Pearl had last spared. Ever since the construction of Little Homeschool he had been busier than ever; he hardly had much time to do anything fun anymore. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“But not perfect.” she smirked as her spear clashed with his sword once again and she managed to throw his stance off just enough to give Pearl the perfect opening. She struck him at just the right angle that his sword flew out of his hand and clattered uselessly on the ground. He raised his hands up in defeat before taking a seat on the floor.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It looks like I still have a lot to learn.” he announced exhausted, but content.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I have to say I’m impressed.” Pearl commended him as she put her spear away. “I haven’t had a worthy opponent to spar against in centuries.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Thanks. I learned from the best.” he said as he pulled himself off the ground and dusted off his clothes.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I assume you use a sword for combat in the future?” she inquired.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Not really.” he confessed. “That's more Connie’s thing, but sometimes we spar for fun. If you think I’m good you should try going up against her; she’s downright terrifying with a sword.” he shuddered as he recalled how their sparring matches would often end with him on the floor covered in bruises.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Connie?” she asked baffled. “Why would I teach her how to swordfight? She is just a child.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“At the time we thought it would be a good idea for her to learn just in case something happened.” he answered vaguely unwilling to reveal much about his future.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Suddenly Twoie realized that he had lost track of time. “Shit!” he reflexively exclaimed before realizing that Pearl was still next to him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Twoie</span>
  </em>
  <span>!” She scolded him appalled by his language. He flushed red in embarrassment. “I know I raised you bett-</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Sorry, Pearl!” he swiftly apologized before he attempted to drag Pearl toward the direction of the warp pad. “I completely forgot about Steven and Amethyst. We need to go right now.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What? Why?” she crossed her arms and refused to budge from her spot.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Ok, but promise you won’t be mad.” he pleaded.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Twoie</span>
  </em>
  <span>.” she warned her patience waning.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Amethyst is going to bring Steven to the prime kindergarten.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What!?” she shouted enraged. “What is she thinking, bringing Steven to a kindergarten!” she quickly began to march towards the direction of the warp pad.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Wait, Pearl!” Twoie shouted as he jogged to catched up to her. “She didn’t mean any harm by it.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Didn't mean any harm!?” Twoie crashed into Pearl’s back as she abruptly stopped walking. She turned to face him. “It’s a </span>
  <em>
    <span>kindergarten</span>
  </em>
  <span>, Twoie. Steven should be nowhere near it. He’s not…” she faltered as she realized something. “How did you learn about the kindergarten?” she abruptly asked him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie looked away from Pearl refusing to meet her gaze. “That’s not important right now. If you want to stop Amethyst we need to leave now.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl opened her mouth as if she was going to continue to argue with him, she hesitated before abruptly closing it. “We will have a discussion about this later.” she informed him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie nodded which was enough to satisfy Pearl as she once again began to walk to the warp pad.</span>
</p><p> </p><hr/><p> </p><p>
  <span>One bright flash of light later and they were at the kindergarten. Twoie quickly scanned the area and was relieved when he failed to locate Amethyst and Steven.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I think we made it here before they did,” he announced. “If we go wait by the entrance we should be able to stop them from coming here.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Let’s hurry then,” Pearl looked at the crumbling injectors with disgust. “I don’t want Steven to ever have to see this horrible place.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie frowned as they silently headed to the entrance of the kindergarten. A conversation between Amethyst and Pearl would go poorly if she was this upset. “Pearl, remember what we talked about earlier?” he asked her. “About how Amethyst views this place as her home.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl was silent even as they reached the entrance. Just as he was beginning to think that she hadn’t heard him, Pearl let out a tired sigh. “I know she was just trying to show Steven her… home, but Steven could have been hurt.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“She shouldn’t have brought him here,” he admitted. “But she would never let anything hurt Steven.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I know.” Pearl conceded. “I don’t want to fight anymore. I just want to make things right. I’m going to apologize to her.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Good, I’m glad.” Twoie sighed in relief as a conflict was narrowly avoided.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They stood there waiting for a few minutes before they began to hear voices approach them. A few seconds later Steven and Amethyst came into view. Steven’s eyes lit up in excitement when he saw them and he instantly rushed over to their direction.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Twoie! Pearl!” Steven enthusiastically ran up to greet them. “Did you guys change your minds about being No Home Boys?” he asked as he attempted to hug both of them at the same time.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hello, Steven.” Pearl greeted warmly as she returned his hug.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hey there buddy.” he smiled down at him and ruffled his hair. “How did it go?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It was really fun! we got to ride in a train cart just like a real No Home Boy and Amethyst was just about to show me where she came fr-”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven’s excited explanation was cut off by the arrival of Amethyst. “Great. The fun police is here-” she stole a peek in his direction. “-and it looks like she brought some back up.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He turned towards Pearl and sent her a subtle nod which she returned. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Steven,” she began gently. “It’s getting late why don’t you head back home with Twoie.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, you can tell me more about your day on the way home.” he added.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Aren’t you guys coming?” he asked as he looked between Amethyst and Pearl.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Amethyst and Pearl are going to stay here for a bit, ok?” he explained as he glanced at Amethysts who had remained silent during their exchange. She was watching him cautiously, but turned away the second he made eye contact.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Why? Is something wrong?” Steven began to grow worried. “Maybe I can help.” he offered.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“No!” he said a bit too loudly. He cleared his throat before continuing. “No, Steven this is something they have to talk about alone.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Are they going to be ok?” he asked as Pearl lead Amethyst away so that they could talk in private.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah they’ll be fine, I promise.” He confidently told him as he watched their retreating figures.</span>
</p><p> </p><hr/><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Amethyst you know you can tell me anything, right?” she gently reminded her.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>After Twoie had left with Steven, Pearl had attempted to have a conversation with Amethyst. Amethyst had attempted to cajole her into an argument, but Pearl remained calm and allowed her to be angry. When Amethyst had finished shouting at her, Pearl had apologized profusely and repeatedly told Amethyst that she wasn’t a mistake.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I know.” she said softly as she rubbed at her eyes. When Amethyst had started to cry Pearl assumed that she had said something wrong, that perhaps she had unintentionally insulted her. So, she began to apologize again. She told Amethyst about all the things she admired about her. Then Amethyst hugged her and surprised Pearl with apologizes of her own. Suddenly they were both crying and hugging each other; they stayed like that for a while</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Was it something that I said?” she timidly asked.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“No, it’s not that. It’s-” she faltered and looked away nervously. “... never mind.” she muttered.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl didn’t want to overstep her boundaries, but she was deeply concerned for her friend. She had been behaving strangely and it was apparent that something was bothering her. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Amethyst?” she once again asked as she placed, what she hoped, was a comforting hand on her shoulder.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>For a moment none of them said anything, choosing instead to silently watch the sun as it began to set. As the seconds stretched on into minutes Pearl let out a defeated sigh and let her hand drop. It was evident that she would not be getting an answer from Amethyst.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It’s Twoie.” she confessed abruptly surprising Pearl. “Something… weird happened.”</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Horror Club</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Steven and Twoie go watch a movie.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>“It’s Twoie.” she confessed abruptly surprising Pearl. “Something… weird happened.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Twoie?” she quietly repeated, hoping that Amethyst had misspoke. That maybe someone or something else had upset her.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl had suspected that something had happened between the two, but felt no joy as her suspicions were confirmed. Had she been informed earlier she would have immediately become suspicious of Twoie, but after their sparring session she found herself hoping that Amethyst was wrong. She had enjoyed their time together and was finding it difficult to dislike Twoie.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It was after the training session with Stev-”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Training session?! What training session?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It was at the sky arena. He wanted to help Steven summon his shield and I was bored so I decided to tag along. Everything was fine at first, but Steven wasn’t able to summon his shield and I started teasing him a bit. I didn’t mean anything by it, y’know?” Amethyst began to rub her arm, she looked away. She quickly continued, “But Twoie got </span>
  <em>
    <span>really</span>
  </em>
  <span> upset. He started lecturing me. Told me I needed to treat Steven better. I got mad. We started shouting at each other.” she paused in her explanation and her next words came out hesitantly, “I don’t know what happened, but he started turning… pink.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Turning pink?”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I thought it was just because he was angry, but he was almost… glowing?” Amethyst uncertainly looked at her as if pleading for an explanation. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl felt her eyes widen at the revelation. She had known Rose for thousands of years and she had never once seen her do anything even remotely resembling glowing before. If Twoie really was Steven then he should not have been able to glow. Humans simply did not glow and change colors.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span> “His whole body was pink and when he shouted… the floor</span>
  <em>
    <span> cracked</span>
  </em>
  <span>.” she paused seemingly debating something before continuing,  “Pearl, I don’t know if this guy is really Steven.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What?!” she frantically began to shake her head. “How can you say that? He has Rose’s shield.” she defended Twoie, but even she could not ignore the growing feelings of suspicion that had taken root in her mind.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I know,” Amethyst tiredly conceded. “but he just seems… </span>
  <em>
    <span>off</span>
  </em>
  <span>. Steven would never act the way that Twoie did.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“That makes no sense! If Twoie is not Steven then who…”  she trailed off as she recalled how both Garnet and herself had initially been wary of him because he was dressed as Pink. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie possessed a Rose Quartz gem, but that did not necessarily mean that he was Steven. There were many Rose Quartz gems made on earth in its early stages of colonization. According to Rose, the remaining Diamonds had bubbled them away when news of Pink’s shattering reached them. Had homeworld sent a Rose Quartz to earth to spy on them? But how did they even know there were still gems on earth? They had destroyed the Red Eye.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She was snapped out of her thoughts by Amethysts voice, “That night when Twoie first showed up, you and Garnet were acting really weird. It was almost like you were afraid of him, why?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl felt her voice catch in her throat as she attempted to explain, “Amethyst, I-”  was all that she managed to get out before her hands locked her mouth in place, preventing anything but strained muffles from escaping.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl flinched as if struck when she saw the hurt flash across Amethysts eyes. She silently cursed herself for being a Pearl. Perhaps if she were a Ruby, or a Topaz, or any other gem she would be strong enough to tell Amethysts the truth, but she was just a Pearl.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Amethysts roughly stomped her foot down on the dirt, “Why can’t you just tell me?! You and Garnet </span>
  <em>
    <span>always </span>
  </em>
  <span>do this!” she harshly gripped at her hair. “And then you guys act like I’m not smart enough to realize that you're hiding something from me.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She managed to pry her hands off of her mouth, “I want to tell you, but I-” her hands once again moved on their own and prevented her from speaking.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“But what?! You don’t think I’m responsible enough?” Pearl frantically shook her head as she attempted to think up a way to tell Amethyst the truth. “Or are you scared I’ll mess everything up?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She would not let the conversation end this way not when their relationship had just started getting better. She tore her hands away from her mouth with as much strength as she could muster, “Homeworld!” she blurted out louder than what was probably necessary. At Amethysts confused look she continued, “He was dressed like-” she clenched her hands into fists to prevent them from trembling. “-a homeworld gem. Garnet and I questioned him about it later that night, but he claimed he was only dressed that way because of a play.” Pearl let out a sigh of relief as her hands stopped shaking. As long as she avoided bringing up Pink she should be fine. “I trust you Amethyst.” Pearl sincerely added while looking Amethyst directly in the eyes.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Amethyst's face softened, “Homeworld?” she questioned softly. “Those are the bad guys that you fought against with Rose. Do you think Twoie is a Homeworld spy or something?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl opened and closed her mouth several times before uncertainty answering, “... I’m not sure. Twoie looks like Steven and he has Rose’s shield, but the timing of his arrival is suspicious at best. Not to mention the outfit he arrived in. Our best course of action right now would be to keep a close eye on Twoie and see if he says or does anything out of the ordinary.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Amethyst nodded, “I’m on it, if that creep tries anything-” she cracked her knuckles. “-he’ll have to go through me first.”</span>
</p><p> </p><hr/><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>The garden was filled with vibrant flowers as far as the eye could see. Many of the flowers were not native to earth; they had a strange and almost mystical feel to them, almost like they had been plucked straight out of a fairytale. He wondered if the planets were these flowers had come from had been colonized. Were they the last remnants of their respective worlds? He frowned before pushing those negative thoughts away. It wouldn’t do him any good to get upset. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“It’s beautiful.” He told her as he took in the scenery around him. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>He took a deep breath and inhaled the sweet aroma of the flowers that surrounded him. He let out a content sigh as he sat down on the grass next to a patch of pink flowers. It had been such a long time since he had gone outside and while he was technically still on homeworld he could at least pretend that he was back on earth. He ran his fingers through the grass savoring the sensation.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>He looked up at Blue Diamond who had been watching his reaction to the gardens and sent her a small smile which she happily returned. She had been the one who suggested they visit Pink’s gardens in the first place; she had hoped the trip would jog his memory. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>According to Blue, his mom had a tendency to collect ‘organics’ from other planets. If an animal caught her attention she would beg Blue to let her keep it. Unsurprisingly, his mom was very irresponsible and would often let the animals roam free which would always result in disaster. Luckily, the plants and flowers that she had collected were easily maintained. Being allowed to enter Pink’s Garden was considered somewhat of an honor since Blue had not allowed anyone to enter since Pink Diamond faked her shattering.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“You used to love strolling through the gardens. We used to all come together.” she told him wistfully as she gazed at one of the many fountains located in the gardens.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Even White?” he asked her a bit taken aback by her statement. He had barely spoken to White Diamond, something which he wanted to change, but from what little he had heard of her he assumed that she hated organic life. He found it very difficult and somewhat comical to imagine her frolicing in the flowers and enjoying herself.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Yes, even White.” She let out a small chuckle as she reminisced. “She claimed that she hated it here, but you always managed to convince her to come.” She turned to face him. “Do you remember that, Pink?” she asked. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“No, but I wish I did.” he told her sincerely. If he could just remember how to get all the Diamonds together for a conversation then hopefully he could convince them to heal the corrupted gems back on earth.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Yellow wanted to destroy this place after….” she hesitated as a pained expression briefly overtook her face, no doubt recalling Pink Diamond’s supposed shattering. “But I wouldn’t let her.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Thank you for not letting her destroy the gardens.” he admired some of the flowers near him. It really was a beautiful garden; they had only just arrived and it had already become his favorite place on Homeworld.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Your gardens, Pink.” Blue Diamond gently corrected him.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Yeah…” his smile faltered. “my gardens,” he repeated.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Being treated like royalty was still something he had still not gotten used to and he doubted that he ever would. He was constantly being showered in compliments and praise. The gems in his ‘court’ adored him and they worshipped the very ground he walked on which made him extremely uncomfortable. He was just glad that Connie and the gems were with him or he probably would have gone insane by now. They were the only people who still called him Steven, everybody else insisted on calling him ‘Pink Diamond’ or ‘my Diamond’.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Have you been able to remember anything?” Blue asked.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“No, not really.” he quickly replied.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>He suppressed a grimace as he saw Blue frown. The truth was that he had been regaining memories or at least that's what he feared was happening. Everyone had always wanted him to be like his mom and now the Diamonds were telling him that he was his mom. He would often have strange dreams in which he was his Pink Diamond and try as he might he couldn’t quite shake off the feeling of deja vu; everything on homeworld had felt familiar even now as he was seated in the gardens he couldn’t help but feel like he had been here before. He was afraid of what that meant, he was afraid that the Diamonds were right. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“... Sometimes though, I have dreams about being Pink Diamond.” he hesitated before telling her the truth; lying to the Diamonds would probably not end well for him he decided.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Dreams?” She inquired as tilted her head slightly in confusion</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Oh! That right you guys don’t need to sleep.” he rubbed his chin as he attempted to explain the human concept of dreaming in terms she could understand. “Well, dreams are kinda like movies. Oh, but you probably don’t know what movies are…” Blue’s face had twisted into a look of confusion. “Sometimes when I’m… resting-” he knew that even though the gems didn’t need to sleep they still had to rest. “I see… visions and in those visions I’m Pink Diamond.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“That’s wonderful, Pink!” Blue happily exclaimed as she clasped her hand together excitedly, seeming to understand his explanation. “It may take a while, but I’m certain that your memories will return.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“What happens if they don’t?” he impulsively asked her before he realized that was probably the wrong thing to say.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“They will.” she swiftly replied as her tone hardened and her smile faltered. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>He felt his body tense up and he gripped the grass next to him a bit too roughly. He didn’t want to upset her, but he was genuinely curious as to what would happen when the Diamonds realized that he might never regain Pink Diamond’s memories. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>She must have sensed his discomfort as her face softened once more as she sent him a small smile. “I’m glad you’re home, Pink.”  </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>He hesitantly smiled back at her.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Home… ” he quietly repeated.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>He wanted to go home.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><hr/><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie happily hummed to himself as he prepared Steven’s breakfast; he was making pancakes. He briefly paused in his cooking and took a sip of his coffee as he pondered his dream. He wondered how the Diamonds were reacting to his absence, he wondered how his family was reacting to his absence. Did they even know he was gone? Or when he finally went back to his time would he return to the moment he left? All this time travel stuff was confusing to him and it made him wish he could talk to Connie. She would probably know the answers. Twoie pushed those complicated thoughts away and tried to focus on more positive things like how for the first time since he arrived in the past he did not feel tired. He had slept on a soft bed in his temple room last night and as a result he felt amazing. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Yo, Twoie.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie turned toward the sound of the voice and was surprised to see Amethyst. She seemed oddly cheerful as she exited her room and took confident strides toward the kitchen.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Oh, Amethyst.” he said surprised that she was talking to him. “Good morning.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“How have you been dude?” she casually asked as she plopped down in a seat at the kitchen island.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie was starting to feel weirded out. Just the other day Amethyst had refused to even look at him and now she was acting like nothing had ever happened.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie turned off the stove as he began to plate the pancakes. “I…” he rubbed the back of his neck nervously, unsure of how to breach the topic. “Amethyst about what happened after traini-”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Don’t worry about it dude.” She abruptly cut him off before he could apologize.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie frowned, “I just wanted to say that I’m sor-” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span> “Let's just forget about it.” she said harshly.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie flinched at her tone. Amethyst must have realized how she sounded because she quickly changed the subject, “So, you must be pretty strong in the future? You probably have a bunch of cool new powers, right?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie wanted to press the issue, but didn’t want to risk upsetting Amethyst. “Yeah, I guess so.” he awkwardly answered as he set a bottle of syrup next to Steven’s pancakes.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“How did your talk with Pearl go?” he asked after a pause of silence.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It went really well.” she said with a surprising amount of warmth. “Pearl and I talked about… a lot of things and I realized that's she’s actually kinda cool.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie let out a chuckle, “Kinda cool, huh? Didn't you say she was the fun police?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Amethyst blushed, “Well, she still is the fun police, but she’s a cooler fun police.” she said.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie smiled glad that their relationship had improved and Steven didn’t have to get involved.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“So, how many new powers do you have in the future?” Amethyst once again began to ask about his powers.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m not sure. I haven’t really been counting. Why the sudden interest in my powers anyways?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“No reason.” she said a little too quickly. Twoie narrowed his eyes in suspicion. Amethyst was acting strange. “I just thought it would be cool to know about that kinda stuff.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Right.” Twoie nodded unconvinced. “I should probably go wake Steven for breakfast.” he informed her as he gestured toward the direction of Steven’s room.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’ll go do it!” Amethyst loudly announced as she rushed over to Steven before Twoie could protest.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Thanks… I guess.” he let out a sigh and took a long sip of his coffee, savoring the flavor. Something told him it was going to be a long morning.</span>
</p><p> </p><hr/><p> </p><p>
  <span>For the rest of the morning and a large part of the day Amethyst continued to ask him strange questions about himself. She asked him questions about the future, many of which he refused to answer. She also began to quiz him on Steven’s interests. She asked him questions like what Steven’s favorite ice cream was; cookie cats were the obvious answer. Steven seemed to think the questions were some sort of strange game and he happily added to the growing list of questions he had to answer.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie had hoped Amethyst would retreat to her room at some point during the day, but she surprised him by staying. In fact, she seemed hesitant to leave Steven alone with him for any extended period of time. He only realized this when Steven hugged him and Amethyst had tensed up and looked nervous. She also constantly put herself in between Steven and himself as if she was afraid that he would hurt Steven.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Are you feeling ok?” Twoie asked Amethyst when Steven excused himself to use the restroom. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie paused the game that they were playing. He set the controller down and turned to face Amethysts.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, I feel great.” she replied as she refused to meet his gaze.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Are you sure? Because I’m going to be honest you’ve been acting really… weird today.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Geez, I said I was fine dude.” she replied defensively. “I gotta go take care of some stuff in my room.” she abruptly announced as she stood up and began to walk over to the temple door. She hesitated in front of the door, glancing back and forth between the bathroom and himself. “Take care of Steven.” was the last thing she said before she disappeared into her room.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie winced as the door slammed shut. He had not wanted Amethysts to leave. He contemplated following after her but ultimately decided against it. He unpaused the video game and busied himself with trying to beat a particularly difficult boss.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Where did Amethyst go?” Steven asked when he returned from the bathroom.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“She went to her room. She had to take care of some stuff.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven looked like he was going to ask more questions, but his phone suddenly buzzed in his pants. “Oh! I almost forgot Ronaldo’s hosting a movie night. You should come.” he told him as he read a text. “I need to pick up Sadie too. Her shift is almost over.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Sure, sounds fun.” he accepted the invitation. “Steven, can I borrow your phone charger?” he asked as he remembered his own cell phone currently dead in his pocket.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, of course. It’s by my bed.” he said as he pointed toward where the charger was still plugged into the wall. “What for?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’ve been meaning to charge my phone ever since I got here, but I didn't bring my charger with me.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven’s eyes widened and began to sparkle, “Future phone!” he exclaimed.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What?” he asked as he walked over to the charger and plugged his phone in. A logo flashed on his screen as his phone booted up.</span>
  <span>
    <br/>
    <br/>
  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You have a future phone!” he rushed over and attempted to peer over Twoie’s shoulder in order to catch a glimpse of the phone. “I bet it’s really cool and super advanced. Oh! Do you have pictures of the future?” he excitedly asked.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, I do but I don't know if I should show them to you.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Aww c’mon </span>
  <em>
    <span>please</span>
  </em>
  <span>.” he begged and Twoie felt his resolve begin to crumble.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I don’t know…” he said, but as Steven unleashed his puppy dog eyes he knew that he could not refuse.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie let out a defeated sigh, “Alright.” he reluctantly agreed as Steven’s eyes lit up in excitement. “I can show you some later, but we better get going if we want to pick Sadie up on time.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven happily cheered as he got ready to leave, “This is going to be the best spooky-movie party ever!” he declared.</span>
</p><p> </p><hr/><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie absentmindedly rubbed small comforting circles on Steven’s back. He had been so excited to take him to a spooky-movie party, but now that they were here Steven was fearfully clinging onto his shirt. Twoie frowned as he felt Steven tremble in his lap; he had forgotten how easily scared he was when he was younger.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You don’t have to keep watching if it's too scary for you.” he gently told Steven.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“No! I can handle it!”  Steven reassured him as he shakily turned to face the TV.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Alright, if you say so…” Twoie said unconvinced as he refocused his attention onto the movie. He remembered being so terrified the first time he saw it that he sat behind the couch, but now he was unfazed by it. He thought the movie was cheesy, over the top, and not really all that scary.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>The music in the movie suddenly became ominous. A large shadow loomed over the Hermit Man. The Evil Bear had found him.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“You're... eating my... leg!” shrieked the Hermit Man, followed by the sound of evil cackles.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven yelped in fright as he burrowed his face into Twoie’s chest in order to avoid looking at the gruesome scene. Twoie once again rubbed Steven’s back until his shaking slowly subsided. Just as he began to wonder if he should have allowed Steven to watch this movie the power suddenly went out.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hey! It was just getting good!” Lars complained as the light house became engulfed in darkness.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What's going on?” Sadie looked around in alarm.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie felt his eyebrows scrunch up in confusion. It felt like he was forgetting something important.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Probably just a fuse.” Lars explained.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Or maybe it's a </span>
  <em>
    <span>ghost</span>
  </em>
  <span>?” Ronaldo said dramatically as he illuminated his face with a flashlight.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sadie let out a nervous chuckle, “Good one.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“No, really. What if it's a </span>
  <em>
    <span>gho-o-o-o-st</span>
  </em>
  <span>? As a skeptic of mortality, I've long suspected that this place might be haunted.” he swiftly walked over to a filing cabinet and began to rummage through some folders until he found what he was looking for. “Aha!” he lifted up a pendulum in triumph. “Spirit, I beseech you!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Dude, cut it out. You're being super-weird.” Lars said.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“We wish to make contact. Please, spirit, send us a sign.” Ronaldo addressed the lighthouse.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie’s eyes widened in realization. He mentally berated himself. How could he have forgotten that there was a gem stuck in the light house.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Guys ther-'' he was cut off by the sound of the pendulum roughly smacking Lars in the face.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Ow!” Lars yelped in pain and rubbed the spot where he had been hit.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Spirit, that was a good sign.” Ronaldo said looking genuinely shocked that anything had happened at all. “But could you send a couple more like that just to be sure?”  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Suddenly all hell broke loose as papers flew out of the filing cabinet at an alarming speed. They violently began to swirl around the lighthouse. Strange whispers could be heard throughout the room.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span> “That's okay, spirit. You can rein it in a little!” Ronaldo shouted, but the gem who was causing all the chaos refused to listen. A cup of coffee was flung in their direction narrowly missing everybody.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“How is this happening?!” Sadie asked fearfully.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It’s a gem.” Twoie announced as everyone turned to look at him. “There’s a gem trapped in the light house.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven’s eyes widened in realization, “What?! How did a ge-” his question was cut off as a barrel was violently thrown in his direction.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie quickly summoned his shield and jumped in front of Steven. The barrel broke when it made contact with his shield.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Are you ok?” he asked a startled looking Steven who merely nodded in response.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Another coffee cup was hurled at Lars. “Look out!” warned Sadie as she tackled Lars onto the floor. “Let's get out of here!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sadie rushed over to the exit and everyone soon followed her lead. Twoie made sure that Steven’s hand was securely held in his own. Just as they reached the exit the door slammed in front of their faces.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ronaldo desperately fiddled with the door knob, “It won't open!” he fearfully announced.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie felt Steven’s grip increase as the door stubbornly refused to budge. He gave Steven’s hand a reassuring squeeze, “Step aside Ronaldo.” he ordered.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ronaldo nodded and moved away from the door.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie released Steven’s hand before approaching the door. He summoned a small spiked bubble around his fist before punching the door. The wood that made up the door splintered and cracked under the pressure before breaking completely. Where the door once stood was now a gaping whole with some pieces of wood clinging to the doorframe. Upon seeing that the door was no longer blocking their escape everybody rushed to exit the room. The pieces of the broken door rushed to meet each other as the door once again sealed itself closed.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What the heck, man! You didn’t have to break down the door.” Lars angrily complained, but it was obvious that he was relieved to be out of that room. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie merely rolled his eyes at Lars before turning away. It was moments like these where he really missed the Lars of his time.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I'm so sorry! I had no idea there was this violent of a presence here.” Ronaldo apologized to the group.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven grabbed onto his hand again, “It's not a ghost, it's a gem.” he informed the group.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A look of relief flashed on Lars’ face at the news that there was no ghost, “Of course.” he declared bitterly. “I should’ve known all this weird stuff is because of you </span>
  <em>
    <span>Steven</span>
  </em>
  <span>.” he sent an annoyed look Steven’s way. “You and you weird family always bring nothing but trouble”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Hurt flashed across Steven’s now shiny eyes, “I’m sorry guys. I didn’t mean for a gem to ruin our movie night.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie felt his anger bubble up when he saw Steven’s distraught expression. He sent Lars a menacing glare, “Man, I forgot how much of a jerk you were when you were still alive.” he said quietly but harshly.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Lars skin paled and his eyes widened in surprise, “... w-what?” he let out a nervous chuckle.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie glared at him for a moment longer, “We should probably get out of here.” he loudly announced.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Good idea Twoie. Let’s go.” Sadie began to hurriedly walk down the stairs with Lars and Ronaldo following closely behind her.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie walked hand in hand with Steven behind the bickering group. It appeared that Ronaldo still believed that there was a ghost and Lars was arguing with him. He felt bad for Sadie who was currently sandwiched in between the two. He cleared his thoughts as he attempted to recall the location of the gem. If Twoie remembered correctly the gem should be trapped in the walls of the basement. He opened his mouth to inform Steven of this fact but was cut off by Steven’s concerns.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Is Lars going to die?! Is the ghost going to kill him?!” he glanced over at Lars’ direction as if he was afraid that Lars would disappear.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie grimaced, he had hoped that Steven had not heard his previous statement. “Steven, there is no ghost and Lars isn’t going to die tonight.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Tonight</span>
  </em>
  <span>?!” his eyes widened in fear. “Does that mean he’s going to die later?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie stayed quiet as he pondered how much of the future he could safely reveal to Steven, “C’mon we need to find the gem before anything else happens. It should be in the basem-”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ominous laughter echoed throughout the building as they finally reached the door that lead outside. Everyone went silent as the laughter continued. Twoie pulled Steven closer to his own body.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What is that?” Sadie flashed her light around in an attempt to find the source of the laughter.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Oh, it's nothing!” Lars desperately tried to reassure himself. “We're all just hearing things and seeing things and feeling things that aren't real.” he took off into a sprint and headed for the direction of the door.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Just as he managed to touch the doorknob the door to the lighthouse roughly slammed itself into his face. He was knocked backwards a few feet and harshly landed on his back. Steven rushed over to help Lars up as a group of violent scarecrow attempted to enter the lighthouse. Ronaldo and Sadie began to sweat as they struggled to keep the door closed.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Steven, stay with Lars!” he shouted over his shoulder as he rushed over to assist Ronaldo and Sadie.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He surprised both Ronaldo and Sadie by opening the door and allowing the scarecrows to enter.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Twoie! What are y-” Sadie began to ask him, but stopped when she saw what he did next.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie had summoned his shield and protectively stood in front of them. He let the scarecrows take a few clumsy steps into the lighthouse before throwing his shield at them. It cut through their bodies like butter and the pieces of their bodies fell into a pile on the floor. They twitched for a moment before going still.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Woah.” Ronaldo said in amazement as he watched Twoie’s shield shimmer before disappearing.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sadie looked equally impressed before shaking her head and refocusing on the situation, “Let’s get out of here before anything else decides to show up.” she hesitantly stepped over the lifeless husks that were blocking the exit. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The floor underneath her suddenly opened revealing a glowing red void. Her screams echoed in their ears as she fell and disappeared. The floor quickly closed behind her preventing them from following. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was silent for a moment as everyone was still reeling from shock at what they just witnessed.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was Twoie who broke the silence, “She’s in the basement.” he said calmly.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ronaldo and Lars snapped out of their shock induced stupor and proceeded to run towards the basement in search of Sadie. Twoie turned to follow after them.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Is Sadie going to be ok?” a sniffling Steven asked him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Sadie is going to be just fine Steven.” he reassured him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Lars is right. This is all my fault. All this gem stuff is because of me isn’t it?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“No,” he replied instantly. “Don’t listen to Lars Steven. He was just scared and being a… jerk.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“But if it weren’t for me the gem would-”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Would still be trapped here. This gem has been trapped here for years. Probably before you were even born.” he leaned down and gave Steven a hug. “It's not your fault Steven.” Steven hugged him back fiercely as his sniffles died down.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven pulled away from the hug, “Let’s go save Sadie.” he said with renewed confidence as he headed toward the basement.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie followed Steven and began to hear voices the closer they got to their destination. When they arrived they were greeted with the sight of an angry mouth on the wall.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Spirit, I deliver the package of darkness! Return to us the innocent Sadie!” Shouted Ronaldo as he lifted a frightened Lars off the ground.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Ronaldo, don’t do it!” pleaded Steven when he realized that Ronaldo was attempting to sacrifice Lars. He ran in front of Ronaldo to try and prevent the sacrifice from happening, but Ronaldo ignored him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“C-come on, man. We used to be friends.” Lars said as he struggled to break free.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“And you threw me away!” Ronaldo retorted as he prepared to fling Lars into the gaping mouth in the wall.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie sighed in exasperation and quickly summoned his shield before softly throwing it at the back of Ronaldo’s head. Ronaldo yelped in pain and dropped Lars on the floor to rub the back of his head. Once freed Lars began to yell at Ronaldo for nearly killing him. Steven got in between the two and attempted to stop the growing argument.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie ignored their bickering and instead focused his attention toward the angry mouth that still held Sadie prisoner. He once again summoned a spiked bubble around his hand and punched the part of the wall above the mouth with the name ‘LARS’ crudely engraved on it. The wood easily broke under the force of his punch and the gem along with Sadie tumbled safely out of the wall.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>At the sound of the wood breaking everyone turned their attention towards where the mouth used to be, “Sadie!” everyone shouted in shock and relief.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie picked up the gem as it began to glow. Everyone looked on in amazement as it projected a flashback of Ronaldo and Lars back when they were still friends. Ronaldo sadly looked on as the flashback played while Lars blushed and walked off. When the flashback ended Steven ran up to Twoie to retrieve the gem.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie handed Steven the gem, “Okay, shh. I've got you.” Steven comforted the gem. “When you were stuck in the wall, was the house like your body? You must have felt like you were under attack back when Lars carved his name in you.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Can I see that?” Ronaldo asked as he reached over to touch the gem.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Uh, sorry.” Steven said as he moved the gem away from him. “We should let it rest.” He said as he bubbled and sent it away.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“So, all that lashing out was just from feeling hurt and trapped for so long…” Sadie said as she dusted pieces of wood off her shirt.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I didn't mean to rip it up, okay?” Lars said as he rejoined the group. “You can stop talking about me now.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Wait! Oh, Sadie, are you okay?” Ronaldo asked ignoring Lars.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Uh, yeah. I'm fine.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Oh, yeah. We were both worried about— I mean, I ran down here faster.” Lars hurriedly added.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Saide sent him a small smile, “Can we get out of here?” she asked as she glanced back at the wooden rubble.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Sadie, you can come with us.” Steven offered as he glanced at Ronaldo and Lars. “I think these two have a lot to talk about.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She grinned, “I bet.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Winter Forecast</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Steven has a strange dream and the gems frantically search for him</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Twoie rolled his eyes as the gems who were seated in the audience stand of the Sky Arena rapidly turned their attention away from him. They had insisted on watching their training session, eager to see Steven’s progress. </p><p>They had also been watching him. It was something that he had not noticed right away, but when he did it became difficult to ignore. Someone was always in the house now and he was almost never left alone with Steven. Every so often he would feel someone’s eyes on him and he would turn just in time to catch a glimpse of one of the gems quickly looking away.</p><p>Twoie only noticed that Steven was nervous because he had seen the same expression many times on his own face. His body was tensed up and his smile was a bit too strained. His eyes darted anxiously toward the direction of the gems who were seated patiently waiting for the demonstration to begin.</p><p>Twoie shot him a reassuring smile, “It’s ok just start whenever you’re ready.” he said.</p><p>Steven hesitantly nodded as he slowly took on the defensive position that Twoie had been teaching him. He put his arm out in front of his body and closed his eyes. His face scrunched up in concentration. Seconds ticked by with nothing happening. Just as Twoie began to worry that Steven would be too nervous to summon his shield in front of the gems it happened; Steven’s arm glowed bright pink as his shield materialized in front of everyone. </p><p>A look of shock briefly appeared on his face before it was replaced by one of joy, “I did it!” he cheered, looking over to see the reaction of their audience.</p><p>Pearl was the first to react, “Excellent job, Steven!” she praised.</p><p>Amethysts pumped her fist in the air, “Way to go, Ste-man!” she hollered.</p><p>Garnet simply smiled and sent him a thumbs up in approval.</p><p>Steven beamed as he eagerly soaked up the praise of his family. Twoie’s eyes widened when he realized that Steven was hovering ever so slightly, “You’re floating!” he blurted out.</p><p>Steven instantly turned his attention to his feet which were not in contact with the ground, “I’m floating!” he exclaimed, stunned.</p><p>The realization that he could now float must have triggered feelings of excitement in Steven because he began to float up even higher.</p><p>Twoie’s face paled at the sight as he recalled his first experience with his floating powers. He had been stuck in the sky for hours as he struggled to control his newfound ability.</p><p>Steven appeared unconcerned with how high up he was getting. He giggled and attempted to do a somersault in the air. He leaned his body forward in order to gain more momentum, but only succeeded in flipping his body upside down. He laughed when he realized his mistake and wildly swung his legs in an attempt to reorient himself.</p><p>Twoie glanced over at the gems who were all watching the events unfold with varying degrees of worry plastered across their faces. Garnet adjusted her visor, but appeared frustrated by whatever she saw in the future.</p><p>She turned to look at him, “You need to teach him how to control his powers. He could be in danger.”</p><p>“Did you see something in your future vision?” Pearl anxiously asked, her eyes never leaving Steven.</p><p>Garnet hesitated, “... I’m not sure.” she shocked Twoie with how uncertain she sounded.</p><p>Garnet did have trouble predicting the future at times when there were many variables involved, but this should have been easy. Garnet once again adjusted her visor and frowned at whatever she was seeing.</p><p>“Stevens getting pretty high up. I can barely see him now.” Amethyst nonchalantly commented as she pointed to a red dot in the sky.</p><p>Pearl’s face turned impossibly pale as her eyes tracked Steven’s rapid ascent, “A fall from that height…”  she trailed off nervously.</p><p>Twoie sent her a reassuring smile, “I’ll go get him.” he said before he leapt up in the air towards Steven’s direction.</p><p>The wind rushed past his ears as he scanned the skies for any sign of Steven. A faint giggle alerted him of his position, “Steven!” he shouted as he turned toward the direction of the noise.</p><p>“Twoie! It’s so beautiful up here.” Steven observed.</p><p>Twoie followed his gaze, “Woah.” he let out a surprised gasp at the sight of the gorgeous landscape. They were currently above huge mountains which appeared almost purple in color due to the setting sun. Luscious and vibrant pine trees littered the mountains.</p><p>“It really is beautiful.” he commented as he took in the sights. “But we should probably go back down before the gems start to worry.”</p><p>Steven pouted but ultimately agreed with him, “So, how do I stop floating?” he asked.</p><p>“Well, our powers are controlled by our emotions. When you feel happy you start to float and when you feel sad you start to fall. So, you need to use a combination of happy and sad memories to safely float back down.”</p><p>Steven looked pensive for a moment before nodding his head, “Sad thoughts.” he muttered to himself before he began to plummet at an alarming speed.</p><p>Twoie blinked in surprise and stared at the spot where Steven once was. His stomach lurched as he watched him fall without any sign of stopping.</p><p>“Steven!” he shouted in alarm before chasing after him. “Happy thoughts!” he reminded him when he got within hearing range.</p><p>“I’ll catch you Steven!” He heard Pearl wail. At some point she had gotten up from her seat and began to wildly run around with her arms outstretched.</p><p>He glanced down nervously at the rapidly approaching ground. Steven was showing no signs of stopping. The shock of falling from such a height was probably making it difficult for him to concentrate on his memories. He wanted Steven to learn to use his powers, but he would not risk his safety. He reached out and pulled Steven into an embrace, “I got you.” he said as he began to safely float to the ground.</p><p>Pearl looked extremely relieved but she still had her arms up as if she was waiting for Steven to fall again. Only when Twoie’s feet touched the ground did she let her arms drop to her side.</p><p>Twoie gently placed Steven down and looked him over; he appeared shaken up but was otherwise unharmed.</p><p>“Are you alright?!” Pearl asked as she rushed over to inspect Steven.</p><p>“I’m fine.” he quickly answered, swatting her worried hands away. “Pearl.” he whined, cheeks flushing in embarrassment as she continued to fret over him.</p><p>She quickly looked him over for any cuts or bruises before engulfing him in a tight hug, “I am just making sure you’re ok.”</p><p>“I’m fine. Really.” he softly assured her as he melted into the hug.</p><p>Garnet, followed by Amethyst approached them, “I think that’s enough training for today.” She placed a hand on Steven’s shoulder.</p><p>“Yeah,” Steven yawned. “All that floating made me tired.”</p><p>Twoie ruffled his hair, “Good job today Steven. We’ll work on your landings another day.”</p><p> </p><hr/><p> </p><p>Steven shuddered as a gust of wind hit his body. He rolled onto his back and his hand blindly fumbled for something to cover his body with. He was confused when his fingers brushed up against fine sand instead of the soft fabric of his comforter. His eyes fluttered open to reveal a dazzling blue sky. </p><p>“Where am I?” he wondered aloud as he sat up and took in his strange surroundings.</p><p>The last thing he remembered was falling asleep in his bed. He glanced down at his clothes and was surprised when instead of his pajamas he saw he was dressed in his iconic red shirt and jeans. He scratched the back of his head in confusion. He didn’t remember getting dressed and he definitely didn't remember going to the beach. </p><p>There was a large body of perfectly clear water a few feet in front of him. As he paid closer attention to his surroundings he realized that everything around him seemed perfect. The sand was unusually soft, the air was crisp and fresh, the trees were a vibrant green, even the sun felt like it was the perfect temperature; not too hot and not too cold. He stood up and began to look around in hopes of locating other people, but unfortunately there were only more trees and sand around him.</p><p>He was pulled out of his musings by the sound of muffled voices. He decided to follow in hopes of finding some answers. With every step he took his surroundings began to resemble a forest more than a beach. At one point he realized that he was walking on grass. He blinked and looked back. A few feet away from him was a literal line in the sand where the two biomes diverged.</p><p>The trees around him became increasingly dense and he had to push away leaves several times in order to continue his pursuit. Just as he was about to push away a particularly large leaf he heard a girl’s voice. He stopped moving and strained his ears to hear what she was saying.</p><p>“-on’t apologize.” she sounded annoyed. </p><p>Steven’s eyebrows scrunched in concentration; she sounded familiar.</p><p>A male voice that sounded shockingly like his own (was that Twoie?) responded, “How did you know I was going to-”</p><p>“Apologize? You have that look on your face.”</p><p>“Look? What look?”</p><p>“That one.” Steven heard what sounded like a light smack followed by the deeper voice yelping in surprise.</p><p>“Hey!” the voice began to protest, but was cut off by the girl.</p><p>“I know you think it’s your fault-”</p><p>“That’s because it is.” </p><p>“No. I chose to dance with you, remember?”</p><p>Steven frowned. They were in trouble because they were dancing?</p><p>“I know, bu-”</p><p>“No buts. It’s the Diamonds fault, ok?”</p><p>“The Diamonds?” Steven quietly repeated to himself.</p><p>There was a pause of silence before the boy let out a defeated sigh, “Ok.” he conceded. </p><p>Another pause, “Blue says that if I behave until the upcoming ball then she’ll let you out.” the boy said.</p><p>Steven’s frown deeped. Now they were talking about the color blue? It sounded like they were referring to a person though. And what was this about letting her out? Were they in some sort of prison? If they were it was the nicest prison Steven had ever seen.</p><p>“That’s good.” She replied in a much happier voice. “Now enough about the Diamonds. What did you bring me this time?”</p><p>“Oh! I almost forgot. You’re going to love this!” He heard the sound of a zipper opening followed by the shuffling of paper. “It’s about a samurai who travels back in ti-”</p><p>Steven’s heart skipped a beat as he felt himself being lifted off the ground by the back of his shirt. He widely swung his limbs around in an attempt to escape his captors grasp.</p><p>“A human?” a gruff yet familiar voice said. “Where are your earrings? And what are you doing so close to my Dia-” They trailed off as they got a good look at his face.</p><p>Steven gasped, “Amethyst?” he asked uncertainly.</p><p>The person holding him up certainly looked like Amethyst, but her shoulders were broad and she was much taller. She was also wearing a strange uniform with a pink diamond emblazoned on the center of it.</p><p>“My Diamond?” the Amethyst asked, a look of confusion falling over her face. “But you were… I thought…” She looked between him and something past the large leaf he was once standing behind.</p><p>She placed him down with a surprising amount of gentleness before pulling the leaf back. His eyes widened as he was met with the sight of Twoie and an older looking Connie.</p><p>Connie was seated next to Twoie on the soft grass. She was dressed in a strange blue vest and a long white loincloth. She also had a pair of large bright purple earrings on. A flower crown rested atop her head. She was giggling at something Twoie had told her.</p><p>Twoie was dressed in that same strange pink outfit he had first arrived in. He rubbed the back up his neck nervously as a blush spread across his cheeks. They both seemed unaware of his presence.</p><p>“My Diamond.” The Amethyst standing next to him loudly announced as she did a strange pose with her arms.</p><p>Twoie turned at the sound of her voice and his eyebrows rose in surprise when they made eye contact, “Steven?!” he shouted. He blinked and examined his surroundings as if he just realized where he was.</p><p>Suddenly everything started to fall apart. The world was engulfed in black and Steven jerked awake.</p><p>“Twoie?” he whispered as he sat up.</p><p>He looked around and realized that he was back in his room; he had never left. It was just a dream, but he couldn’t shake the feeling that it had actually happened. It felt so real.</p><p>He turned his head to the direction of the temple door. Judging by the pink glow being emitted, it was Twoie who was exiting his room. He was still wearing his pajamas and his hair was messy; it was clear that he was in a hurry.</p><p>“Steven!” he shouted when he realized that he was awake.</p><p>He rushed up the stairs to his bedroom and took a seat on the edge of his bed. All previous urgency seemed to leave his body as he struggled to speak, “I… uh…” he stumbled over his words. “Did you have any strange dreams?” he asked nervously.</p><p>Steven’s eyes widened in shock as he realized that the Twoie he saw in his dream had actually been Twoie. “That was real?!”</p><p>Twoie grimaced at his question, “We have the power to travel into other people’s dreams.” He quickly explained. “What did you see?” he urgently asked him.</p><p>“I was on a beach except it was also a forest? I’m not sure.” he hummed in confusion as he recalled the strange place. “Amethyst was there too, but she looked different. Oh! And you and Connie were there, but you were both dressed really weird.”</p><p>Twoie nodded at his explanation, “Steven don’t tell the gems about this.” he instructed him.</p><p>Steven’s stomach churned uncomfortably at the thought of hiding something from the gems, “Why?” he asked. “Wouldn’t that be lying?”</p><p>“It’s not lying, we're just not telling them everything.”</p><p>“That’s exactly what lying is.”</p><p>“I just don’t want to make them… worry.”</p><p>“Ok, I won’t tell them-” a relieved look made its way to Twoie’s face. “If you answer some of my questions.”</p><p>Twoie let out a defeated sigh before nodding in agreement, “What do you want to know?”</p><p>“Did that actually happen to you?”</p><p>“Yeah that was a memory.” Twoie looked wistful. “It happened a long time ago.”</p><p>“Why did Amethyst look so different?”</p><p>Twoie hesitated before answering, “That’s because it wasn’t Amethyst. Well, not our Amethyst.” He awkwardly explained.</p><p>“There are more Amethysts?!” Steven’s eyes sparkled in wonder as he imagined a room full of Amethysts. He wondered what they would do. Would they be exactly like his Amethyst or would they be different?</p><p>“I really shouldn’t be telling you this.” Twoie confessed nervously looking toward the temple door as if he expected one of the gems to pop up and scold him.</p><p>“Are there more Amethysts?” he repeated.</p><p>“Yeah there are,” he finally admitted. “but you probably shouldn’t tell the gems that you know that.”</p><p>“Woah!” he said amazed at the revelation. He wondered if his Amethyst knew any other Amethysts. If she did then he had never heard her talk about them</p><p>Twoie stood up to leave, “Ok, if that’s everything then I should head bac-”</p><p>“Wait!” He protested. “I have more questions.”</p><p>Twoie sighed before sitting back down, “Alright, but just one more question.” he said.</p><p>Steven nodded as he thought about what to ask. He was tempted to ask about Connie’s strange outfit or if they had really been held prisoner, but his mind kept wandering back to what the other Amethyst had called him, “In the dream that Amethyst called me ‘my Diamond’ what does that mean?”</p><p>Twoie stiffened and his face drained of all color, “I… w-what?” he sputtered nervously.</p><p>“You and Connie were talking about Diamonds too. What or who are they?”</p><p>“I can’t answer that.”</p><p>“What? But you said-”</p><p>“Ask me something else. Literally anything else.” he practically begged.</p><p>Steven frowned as his curiosity only grew at Twoie’s odd reaction, “That’s the only thing I want to know.” he crossed his arms and stared at Twoie.</p><p>Twoie looked away, “I’m sorry Steven, but I can-”</p><p>“I’ll tell the gems.” he threatened. </p><p>Twoie let out a loud sigh and began to pull at his hair, “I….” he bit his lip nervously. “The Diamonds are…  leaders.” he hesitantly revealed.</p><p>Steven blinked. He was expecting a much more interesting answer. “Leaders of what?”</p><p>“Leaders of… other gems like the Amethyst you saw. It’s pretty late-” he let out an exaggerated yawn. “I should probably go back to bed.” he gestured towards his room in the temple with his thumb before quickly standing.</p><p>Steven wanted to ask him more questions, but realized that Twoie would probably not reveal anymore than he already had. “Goodnight Twoie.” he said finally allowing him to leave.</p><p>“Goodnight Steven.” Twoie replied as he approached the door to his room.</p><p>“Twoie, wait!” he called out.</p><p>Twoie stiffened and apprehensively turned around, “Yes, Steven?”</p><p>“Thank you for telling me the truth.”</p><p>Twoie’s face softened and he flashed him a small smile, “Yeah, no problem.” he said as he turned around and entered his room.</p><p>Steven stared at the spot where Twoie stood for a few minutes after he left. He attempted to process all the new information he received. He fluffed his pillow and sighed as more questions swarmed inside his mind. As his head touched his pillow he knew that he would not be getting much sleep that night.</p><p> </p><hr/><p> </p><p>Twoie placed one foot on his shield and kept the other one steady on the soft blanket of white snow. He was standing atop the hill with the lighthouse behind him. He tried not to shiver as a particularly cold gust of wind hit him. He did not have anything suitable for the cold weather, but he was determined to show Steven and Connie how to go shield sledding.</p><p>Connie nervously glanced at his attire, “Are you sure you should be out in this weather, Mr. Twoie?” she asked.</p><p>His nose scrunched up in distaste at her chosen name for him, “I’ll be fine.” he assured her. “And you can just call me Twoie.” he added.</p><p>She shook her head, “My mom says I’m not allowed to call adults by their first name.”</p><p>Twoie frowned, feeling much older than he actually was. “But I’m only seventeen so I’m technically not an adult yet.”</p><p>She rubbed her chin as she considered this new information, “Ok, Twoie.” she nodded in agreement.</p><p>Twoie watched in confusion as Steven struggled to take off his scarf. His thick gloves made the task more difficult, but he eventually managed to do it. “For you.” he told him as he handed him the light blue scarf, “I don’t want you to get sick.” he added when he saw the confusion on Twoie’s face.</p><p>He shot him a grateful smile, “Thank you, Steven.” he said as he carefully adjusted the scarf around his neck. His heart warmed at the kind gesture even if the scarf did very little in keeping him physically warm, “Watch and learn.” was the last thing he told them before he used his foot to push himself down the hill.</p><p>The cool wind flowed through his hair as he picked up momentum. He turned right then left. He leapt up in the air and stuck a few poses before landing back on his shield which was still sliding down the hill. He slowed down considerably before stopping as he reached the bottom up the hill.</p><p>He picked up his shield and used his abilities to jump back to the top of the hill where Connie and Steven were both watching him with similar looks of shock.</p><p>“That was amazing!” Steven yelled, eyes shining with excitement. </p><p>“And surprisingly graceful!” Connie added as she clapped.</p><p>“Now it's your turn. You two can go together.” He informed them as he increased the size of his shield to where they could both sit comfortably on it.</p><p>“Yeah! C’mon Connie!” Steven practically dragged her next to the shield in his excitement. He eagerly sat down at the front of the shield nearly sent it sliding down the hill. Twoie secured in place with his foot as he patiently waited for Connie to take a seat.</p><p>“I don’t know…” she hesitated as she scanned the steep hill. “It looks kind of dangerous.”</p><p>“Don’t worry.” Steven waved off her concerns. “Twoie is right here. I know he would never let anything hurt us.”</p><p>Conie glanced at him and then back at the shield before nodding and taking a seat behind Steven. She hugged him tightly and nestled her face on his back, “Ready.” she said and nodded at him.</p><p>“Have fun.” He said as he sent them down with a light push of his foot.</p><p>Twoie chuckled as he heard their whoops and hollers of excitement all the way from atop the hill.</p><hr/><p>Garnet ripped the white comforter off the small bed and frowned when she saw no one was underneath it. She kneeled and searched under the bed in hopes of finding the two children, but was disappointed at the empty space underneath.</p><p>When Pearl and Amethyst informed her about Twoie’s pink outburst she had immediately become worried for Steven’s safety. She had instructed Amethyst to not leave them alone together, but Twoie had quickly become suspicious of her behavior. Since then they had started taking shifts in the house to make sure Twoie didn’t try anything.</p><p>“Welp, they’re not in the toilet.” Amethyst announced, hair dripping with water, as she exited the bathroom. </p><p>Pearl meanwhile paced around the house, “Do you think Twoie took them?! What if they used the warpad?! They could be anywhere!” she frantically shouted as she tugged at her hair.</p><p>“Pearl.” She said sternly. “You need to calm down.”</p><p>“Yeah, P you need to chill. They couldn’t have gotten that far, right Garnet?”</p><p>Garnet ignored her question and busied herself with searching under the couch cushions, “Keep looking.” she ordered.</p><p>Seconds dragged on into minutes as they tore the house up looking for Steven and Connie. Her fear for their safety grew with each unsuccessful search. She glanced outside the window at the growing piles of white snow that littered the beach. Even with her future vision out of commission she knew it was unlikely that they would be outside in this weather.</p><p>“Do you see us finding them in your visions?” Pearl asked not bothering to hide her growing panic.</p><p>Garnet slowed her search at the question, “... I can’t see them.” she quietly confessed.</p><p>Pearl mouth gaped open in shock, “What?!” she shrieked loudly enough to hurt her ears.</p><p>Even Amethyst, who was normally the calmer of the two, paled at her revelation, “What do you mean you can’t see them?” she clenched her fists. “I knew I shouldn’t have left him alon-”</p><p>“No.” she interrupted her rant before it could begin. “I can’t see them.” she repeated.</p><p>Realization dawned on Pearl’s face, “Garnet, is something wrong with your future vision?”</p><p>“It doesn’t work with events or people surrounding Twoie. It was part of the reason I reacted so negatively to his arrival”</p><p>Amethyst’s eyes briefly widened before she narrowed them in anger, “And you’re just telling us this now?!”</p><p>“I knew it would cause panic.” She stole a glance at Pearl whose pacing had turned frantic, “I was hoping it would improve over time.”</p><p>“Has it?”</p><p>She was silent for a moment as she contemplated how much she should reveal, “It’s been getting worse.” </p><p>Silence dominated the house as they processed the information. </p><p>Pearl started shrieking. </p><p>Amethyst quickly joined in.</p><p>“What do we do now?!”</p><p>“Ugh! I can’t believe this!”</p><p>They continued to shout, but she focused her attention on locating Connie and Steven. She had already checked with Greg and he said that he hadn’t seen them. She used her future vision as a last ditch attempt to locate Steven. It didn’t work. </p><p>She heard the sound of objects hitting each other followed by a loud crack, “Amethyst! Why would they be inside the television?!”</p><p>“Well, I don’t see you coming up with any better ideas!”</p><p>Garnet tried again. All she got were glimpses of snow.</p><p>The shouting increased as both Amethyst and Pearl redoubled their efforts in locating the children. They started to throw pieces of furniture across the room as their panic increased. Garnet rubbed the bridge of her nose and attempted to cool her rising temper.</p><p>A pillow flew across the room. </p><p>It smacked her in the face.</p><p>“Enough!” She roared causing her teammates to instantly go silent. “We need to keep looking. Amethyst go search the town.” she ordered.</p><p>“But I already checked around town. Twice! They’re not there.”</p><p>“Then we check again. And again. We don’t stop looking until we find the-”</p><p>A bright flash of light caught her attention. She turned to look at it. A pink portal appeared in the living room. A few seconds later Steven and Twoie popped out of it riding on Lion.</p><p>A tense silence stretched on as both groups stared at each other in disbelief.</p><p>Steven broke the silence, “What happened to the house?” he asked as his eyes scanned the messy room.</p><p>“Steven!” they shouted in unison as they rushed to get closer to him.</p><p>Pearl engulfed him in a hug, “Thank goodness you’re ok!”</p><p>“Yeah man, we were going crazy looking for you!”</p><p>Garnet stared at Twoie who was watching the events unfold with a confused look on his face, “Connie is not with you.” she observed noting her strange absence.</p><p>“There was a storm coming. Connie’s mom said that she had to go home. That’s where we were; at Connie’s house. I figured it would be faster if we took Lion.” he explained as he affectionately pet the feline.</p><p>Amethyst glared at Twoie, “So, you just took off without telling us? What the heck man!”</p><p>“Next time tell us before you leave with Steven.” She instructed him.</p><p>Twoie put his hands up in a placating gesture, “Sorry. I didn’t think it would be a big deal.”</p><p>“Twoie didn’t do anything wrong.” Steven defended Twoie as he squirmed out of Pearl’s embrace. “He showed me and Connie how to go shield sledding and then he showed us some pictur-”</p><p>“Shield sledding?!” Pearl asked.</p><p>“Yeah, we went on top of the big hill by the lighthouse and we slid all the way down using Twoie’s shield. It was really fun! You should have see-”</p><p>“Why would you show him that?!” Pearl sent Twoie a disapproving look. “What if he got hurt?!”</p><p>“Yeah talk about irresponsible!”</p><p>Garnet frowned as she took notice of Steven’s tense posture. The distress on his face increased as Pearl and Amethyst continued to scold Twoie, “Guys, it-” he attempted to calm them down, but they just shouted over him.</p><p>He clenched his small gloved fists, “Stop it!” He shouted, forcing everyone’s attention onto him. “Why are you guys being so mean to Twoie?”</p><p>She attempted to calm him and explain the situation, “Steven-”</p><p>“No!” He interrupted her. “Twoie’s been nothing but nice to us since he got here. Why can’t we just get along? In case you forgot he is me. So if you treat him badly then you’re treating me badly.”</p><p>Silence permeated the house as Garnet considered his words. She was unsure if Twoie really was Steven, but it was clear that Steven believed it. Seeing them yell at Twoie was probably upsetting to him and while Twoie was suspicious they had no evidence against him. There also was the possibility that Twoie really was Steven and if that were the case she would feel horrible about treating him badly.</p><p>She took off her visor as she made her decision, “We’re sorry Steven.” she said sincerely as she looked him in the eyes. “You’re right. We should have treated him better.”</p><p>Pearl quickly followed her lead, “Yes, I may have overreacted when I saw you were missing.'' She looked at Twoie. “I apologize for suspecting the worse of you Twoie.”</p><p>“I also apologize for Pearl.” Amethyst paused before adding in a much softer voice, “And I’m sorry too.” </p><p>Twoie for his part seemed unfazed by their previous hostility and easily accepted their apologies, “It’s ok I know you guys are just worried about Steven.” he smiled reassuringly. </p><p>“Good.” Steven nodded seemingly satisfied with their apologizes. He looked around the room again, “So, what did happen to the house?” he asked.</p><p>Pearl sheepishly smiled, “We may have gotten a little carried away in our search for you.”</p><p>Amethyst chuckled, “Yeah, I’m pretty sure I broke your toilet dude.” she admitted.</p><p>“What?!” Steven asked alarmed.</p><p>“Don’t worry Steven we’ll get you a new toilet.” She glanced at the shattered TV screen. “And a new TV.” she added.</p><p>“Not again!” he shouted as he rushed upstairs to access the damage to his room.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thanks to Potatolover226 for the dream idea in this chapter!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0010"><h2>10. Split</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Steven shares his strange dream with Garnet with unexpected results. Pearl and Amethyst spend their day following Twoie.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>He opened his bleary eyes as the ground swayed underneath him rousing him from his peaceful slumber. He shivered, the floor was hard and frigid, nothing like the warm and comfy bed back at his home. Upon realizing he was no longer in his room he launched himself into a sitting position.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span> “Huh?” he rubbed at his tired eyes “Where am I?” he mumbled, suppressing a yawn.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The only thing he could make out as he squinted at his surroundings was how dark it was. The ground shook. He whipped his head toward the direction of the noise and saw a large set of marble doors burst open. He pressed his body close to the cold wall, making himself smaller as the tallest woman he had ever seen sauntered into the room. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Giant woman.” he whispered as he inspected her strange appearance. Apart from being enormous the woman was also a striking shade of Blue. Her skin, her eyes, and even her clothes were all different shades of Blue. The large Diamond shaped gemstone that rested atop her chest told him that she wasn’t human. He recalled his conversation with Twoie where he told him that Diamonds were some sort of leaders. Who was she in charge of? The strange Amethyst he saw or maybe other gems?</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The light from the open doors poured into the gloomy room revealing another person that he instantly recognized as Twoie. He was seated with his back against the wall, in clear view of the furious gem. His muscles tensed as he watched the scene unfold.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I cannot believe you! Making a scene like that!” the blue gem shouted.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>There was no fear on Twoie’s face as he stood up, “We weren't trying to make a scene! We were just dancing!” he snapped. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>His eyebrows furrowed. Did this gem really hate dancing that much?</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Connie!” Twoie peered into the darkness of the empty room. He huddled close to a dark corner and slowed his breathing as Twoie turned his frantic gaze in his direction. He let out a small sigh when he remained undetected. “What have you done with Connie?!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Her eyes hardened as she continued to scold Twoie like a mother would a toddler, “What have I done?! What have you done!? Fusion! And with a human no less!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>They must have been talking about Stevonnie. Twoie must have fused with Connie at some point while they were dancing. What he couldn’t figure out was why she would punish them for fusing. When he was Stevonnie he was filled with nothing but love and he couldn’t imagine why someone would be so opposed to that.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Blue, where is Connie?!” Twoie asked his voice cracking, his eyes once again darted around the room.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“She was sent to your zoo.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>His eyes widened at the revelation that his best friend was being kept in a zoo. Was she being forced to do tricks?</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“The zoo! Why?!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yellow was furious. She thought it would be best to keep you two separated for the time being.” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Was everyone in this strange place named after colors? First Blue and now there was someone named Yellow. If Yellow was anything like Blue he knew he wouldn’t like her. How could somebody get so angry over fusion. It made no sense.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“You have to take me to her! We didn’t do anything wrong! You have to let her out!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“We will return her to you when you learn how to properly conduct yourself during a ball. Until then she will remain in your zoo.” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>His nose scrunched up at the way the gem, Blue, talked about Connie like if she were a toy to be taken away.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Blue turned and walked off toward the exit not bothering to say goodbye.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Blue!” Twoie roared while charging at the rapidly closing door.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The slamming of the doors signaled that they were once again left alone in the miserable, dark room. He waited a moment, nervously staring at the closed door before stumbling toward the direction where he had last seen Twoie. He squinted when he saw the outline of Twoie’s body. Now that they were closer he could make out Twoie’s outfit. It was the same pink one he had been wearing when he first arrived and the same one he had been wearing in the last dream. Was that his favorite outfit or something?</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Stupid Diamonds and their stupid rules” Twoie grumbled. He flinched at the sound of flesh hitting marble. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He extended his arm out; his hand hovered uncertainly over Twoie’s shoulder. A hoarse shout made him pull his arm back in fear, “I</span>
  <em>
    <span> hate </span>
  </em>
  <span>it here!” he heard the marble wall crack. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The room became illuminated by a dim pink light that came from Twoie’s body. He was leaned against the wall. His breathes came out in short uneven puffs, “Twoie?” he murmured when Twoie began to sniffle. Was he crying? </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie’s back went stiff, “Steven?” he asked, sounding tired.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I… a-are you ok?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“You shouldn’t be here.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“What is this place? Why are </span>
  <em>
    <span>you </span>
  </em>
  <span>here?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“You need to leave.” was the only answer he received.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He gnawed at his bottom lip. “M-maybe I can help.” he placed a hand on Twoie’s shoulder. “Just tell me what’s wrong.” he pleaded.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Please</span>
  </em>
  <span>.” Twoie turned to face him and for the first time since he woke up he got a clear view of his face. His eyes were puffy and red with dark circles underneath them, “Just leave.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>His mouth opened to protest, but his voice caught in his throat when his head started to spin. He cradled his head in his hands as his vision went dark. It returned a few moments later and he was left staring at the ceiling of his bedroom. He glanced at the temple door and waited for Twoie to come out like he had last time, but as the seconds ticked on into minutes he was forced to accept that he would not be coming.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven absentmindedly picked at the omelette Twoie had made him. He couldn’t get the image of Twoie’s sad face out of his head. Twoie had decided he had to take care of some ‘important business’ that morning. He used the warp pad and took off somewhere immediately after making breakfast so he couldn’t ask him anything. He let out another sigh as he took a halfhearted bite of his now cold breakfast.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“You seem upset.” Garnet said as she took a seat next to him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He was silent as he debated whether he should ask her for advice. Twoie had been upset in the dream and he wanted to help, but he didn’t know how. He also wasn’t sure how to explain his new dreaming powers and he didn’t want Garnet to become upset with Twoie. He knew that the gems didn’t like Twoie for some reason. They had apologized for yelling at him, but they continued to ignore him for the most part.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Garnet, you know about fusion right?” he decided to ask her instead as he recalled the gem from his dream.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Her lips upturned into a small smile, “Yeah, I guess you could say that.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He began to pick at his food again unsure of how to phrase his next question. Garnet patiently waited for him as he collected his thoughts, “Is fusion bad?” he bluntly asked her.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He placed his fork down and turned to look at Garnet when he didn’t receive an answer. He had known Garnet his whole life and had learned pretty early on that she was not an expressive person. That's not to say that she wasn’t affectionate, but she wasn’t really known for her facial expressions. It was clear to him that his question had shocked her because her eyebrows were raised. On anyone else he wouldn’t think much of it, but on Garnet it was practically a shout of surprise.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Fusion,” she began slowly. “Requires trust and understanding to be accomplished. It’s not something that is bad.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He nodded his head at her explanation. He already knew all of that which was why he had been so confused at Blue’s obvious hatred for fusion, “Why do think someone would hate fusion?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Garnet hummed in thought before answering, “Well, maybe they're jealous.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Jealous?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Maybe they don’t have anybody that wants to fuse with them.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He rubbed his chin as he considered her answer. Was that woman from Twoie’s dream just jealous of Stevonnie? It seemed like there was more to it than that. She sounded disgusted when she talked about fusion, not jealous.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Twoie has been telling you things.” she accused.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“No!” he answered a bit too quickly.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He plastered on what he hoped was a reassuring smile, but he was never good at keeping secrets and Garnet always managed to tell when he was hiding something, “He told you that fusion was bad.” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“It wasn’t Twoie.” he responded before Garnet jumped to conclusions. It was the truth. The angry gem was the one who had a problem with fusion not Twoie, “I had a weird dream.” he explained.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He remained silent in hopes that she would lose interest and leave. He promised Twoie not to tell the gems about the dreams, but he also wanted to learn more so that he could help him, “Steven.” Garnet said sternly.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“There was a gem.” He blurted out, no longer able to stand her intense stare, “She was big, really big and blue. She told me that fusion was bad. It was a dumb dream. I don’t even know why I still remember it.” he let out a small anxious laugh as he guaged her reaction to his explanation.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Her body went rigid, “...Describe her gem.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He tilted his head, “What?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Describe her gem.” she repeated.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh, umm…” he rubbed the back of his neck as he attempted to recall the gemstone. “Well, it was blue and it was right on her chest.” he pointed to a spot on his own chest. “It was shaped kind of weird.” he traced the shape of the gemstone in the air using his fingers. “It almost looked like a Diamond.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“...”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Garnet’s lack of response was unsettling. He continued talking to fill the void of silence, “Her name was Blue and she also had long hair if that helps...” he shifted in his seat at her continued silence. “Garnet?” he asked, uncertain of what he should do.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She stood without warning. The sounds of her chair scraping against the wood floor hurt his ears, “... I see.” she said as she turned and started walking toward the direction of her room.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Concern welled up in his chest when he noticed her trembling, “Is something wro-” he attempted to ask, but the door to the temple had already sealed shut.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He sighed, turning back to his breakfast and took another bite. Why didn’t the gems ever tell him anything? He knew he could help if they just let him. He chewed his food and his eyes wandered to the white and purple gemstones that decorated the temple door, “I wonder what Pearl and Amethyst are up to.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Amethyst.</span>
  </em>
  <span>” Pearl hissed as another wet glob of red mush hit the back of her head. Her nose scrunched up in disgust as she wiped away the remains of a strawberry from her hair. “Be serious.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Amethyst let out an exaggerated sigh as she plopped down on the ground next to her, “</span>
  <em>
    <span>Fiiine</span>
  </em>
  <span>.” she whined, not bothering to lower her voice.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Your volume.” she whispered. “You’re going to get us caught.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The purple gem rolled her eyes in annoyance, but did begin to talk in a softer tone, “He’s not even doing anything.” she gestured toward a figure a few feet away from them.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl and Amethyst had decided to follow Twoie around that day. They had hoped that he would meet up with another Homeworld gem thus confirming their suspicions about him being a spy, but so far he had just been lying on the grass and staring at the clouds.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“We just have to be patient.” she reassured a restless Amethyst as she shifted to a more comfortable position behind the large strawberry. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She had been on guard ever since she realized that they were in the strawberry battle fields; there was an abundance of weapons located there. Her eyes never wavered as she waited for Twoie to make his next move.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I can’t believe this!” Amethyst exclaimed out of the blue. Pearl turned to her agitated teammate and put a finger over her mouth in a shushing motion. She did not want to give away their position, but Amethyst ignored her, “He’s sleeping!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“What?” she whipped her head back towards the location where Twoie rested. She strained her ears and after a few moments she was able to make out the sounds of light snoring. She leapt up from the spot she had been crouched in for the past couple hours, “Has he been asleep this whole time?!” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She slapped her hands over her mouth when she realized how loud she had been. She stood still, her body stiff and eyes wide as Twoie began to stir from his position on the ground. Were it not for Amethyst yanking her back down behind the large red fruit she probably would have remained there and been caught, “Way to go, P.” Amethyst snickered.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>A faint blush spread across her face but she otherwise ignored her comment and focused on listening for any movements. A loud yawn informed her that Twoie was awake. She took a peak around the edge of their cover and was able to see him stand and stretch his limbs, “I needed that.” he said out loud as he let out a content sigh.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She darted back into their hiding place as he approached their direction. The sounds of fruit being squished under sandals increased in volume as he came closer. Just as she thought the noises couldn’t get any louder they stopped. It was silent for a moment before the footsteps started up again as he passed the strawberry they were hiding behind.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Did he see us?” She asked as she turned to look at Amethyst who simply shrugged at her.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>A brilliant white light pulled her attention to the warp pad. Twoie was leaving and they needed to chase after him. They both sprung into action and managed to get into the stream before it disappeared. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Garnet did her best to ignore the sound of her own frantic pacing. She hugged herself tight and attempted to calm the swirling storm of emotions raging inside her.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Calm dow-“</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t want to calm down.” She interrupted herself; one of her hands were shaking.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Her body glowed white and trembled for a moment before she hugged herself even tighter and stabilized once more.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She clenched her hand into a fist, “We have to bubble him!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Her other hand grabbed onto her wrist, “We need to think this through. We don’t have enough evide-”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Her head began to throb, “Evidence! Steven was talking about Blue Diamond!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Her body shook, “We can’t afford to be rash.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She stabilized for a moment, “If you’re not going to take this seriously then you can just leave!” her body split apart and she came undone.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Large rock walls loomed over them, blocking out the warm rays of the sun. The sweet smell of the strawberries were gone. The lush and vibrant green of the grass that once surrounded them was replaced by dull and lifeless rocks. Pearl felt Amethyst stiffen beside her.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span> Twoie had gone to the Kindergarten. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Her eyes locked onto his form which continued to shrink in size as he strolled deeper and deeper into the kindergarten.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Amethyst crossed her arms over her chest, “Why’d he come here?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl eyed the kindergarten with caution, “Maybe he wanted to see where you were made.” she replied as her anxiety of the situation grew.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Maybe he should mind his own business.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She placed a comforting hand on Amethyst's shoulder. The kindergarten was still a sore subject with her and Pearl wanted to reassure Amethyst that she did not think less of her.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Amethyst gave her a small smile before tugging her along in the direction where Twoie went, “C’mon let’s go follow this creep.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Trailing him in the kindergarten proved much more difficult than she expected it to be. Unlike the strawberry battlefields which had an abundance of things that could be used as cover the kindergarten was empty and flat. Many times they had to resort to hiding in the holes that the soldiers left when they emerged all those years ago.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“This sucks.” a bird shaped Amethyst commented as she perched atop her shoulder. She had to shapeshift into a bird so that they could hide in one of the smaller gem shaped spaces.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She waited until Twoie had completely passed their hiding spot before answering, “I thought you enjoyed spending time here.” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, but that was my hole.” She eyed their location in disgust. “I don’t like being in these other holes. It feels weird”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She nodded, “I agree thi-”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Woah, check it out.” Amethyst interrupted as she gestured with her wings to where Twoie was standing. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She stuck her head out of the hole to get a better view. Twoie had leapt on top of one of the many injectors still lodged into the walls of the kindergarten. His face was pensive as he tapped it with his foot.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Her eyes flitted to the other injectors around them,  “What is he doing?” she turned to look at Amethyst. “Do you think he is trying to reactivate the injectors?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Amethyst opened her mouth to respond but was cut off by the sound of a loud crack. The noise pulled her attention back to the empty spot where the injector once was. Twoie had kicked the injector, yanking it out of the wall and sent it crashing down. A smoke of dirt and pebbles was thrown up in the air where the injector made contact with the ground obscuring Twoie from view.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“He’s totally wrecking the place.” Amethyst said, displeasure apparent in her tone.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl wrung her hands together, “This site has been damaged enough by the Gems that were incubated here 6,000 years ago! That's it! It's confirmed. He is up to no good!” she summoned her spear and began to exit their hiding spot with the intent of charging toward him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>A firm hand gripped her shoulder preventing her from pursuing the culprit, “Woah, slow down there P.” A normal looking Amethyst told her.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“But Amethys-” She protested as she was dragged into a different, larger hole.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I want to bust this dude as much as you do, but don’t you want to figure out what he’s after.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Huh?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Amethyst looked pensive, “I’ve been thinking and none of this makes any sense.” She said.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She furrowed her brow in confusion, “What do you mean?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I mean why go through all the trouble of pretending to be Steven if he just wanted to go to kindergarten. Couldn’t he have done that without lying to us? There’s gotta be more to it than just that. Maybe something only we can help him with. I don’t know...” she trailed off.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Her eyes widened when she realized that her teammate had a point, “Wow, Amethyst! That was surprisingly insightful.” She complimented.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span> A faint blush spread across her cheeks, “Yeah, well I can do that when I want to.” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>A shrill, ear-splitting noise invaded her ears. She gripped her head in discomfort. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Amethyst shielded her ears with her hands. “What is that noise?!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Twoie.” she answered, pointing at him. He had somehow managed to rip off the drill tip of the injector and was now dragging it away. The metal scraped against the floor. Just how strong was he?</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The unpleasant noise faded away as he put distance between them, “Ok, this is getting really weird.” Amethyst commented.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl nodded and slunk out of the hiding spot, with Amethyst in tow and trailed after him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Why the heck would he want that? </span>
  <em>
    <span>I</span>
  </em>
  <span> don’t even want that and I have a room full of actual garbage.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m not sure…” she gnawed on her lip. “The drill tip is useless without the rest of the injector.” </span>
  <span>Her eyes scanned the area, searching for the answer to his strange behavior. If he wasn’t here to reactivate the injectors then what was his plan?</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“He’s headed for the warp pad.” Amethyst said as she pointed at a distant Twoie. “C’mon, P!” her body lurched forward as she was dragged to the direction of the warp pad.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven mashed the buttons on his control and stuck his tongue out in concentration. His character skillfully avoided the dragon's fire attack. He flicked his joystick to the right then to the left just narrowly avoiding being crushed by the dragon’s tail. He smirked as he glanced at the dragon’s dwindling health bar.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“-find him and bubble him!” A furious shout made him drop his control.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He rushed to pause his game before turning his gaze toward the location of the noise. He blinked at the sight before him. Two small children? (at least he thought they were children) were having a heated argument in his living room.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>One of them was a pale shade of blue. She was wearing an elegant dress, her hair was draped over her face, “You’re letting your emotions control you. You need to calm down.” She said in a monotone voice as she trailed behind the other child. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The second child was fuming with rage and was a bright shade of red. She was dressed in a simple shirt and shorts and had a large poofy head of hair that resembled a cube, “Argh!” She pulled at her hair. “Stop saying that! I’m perfectly calm!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven opened his mouth before closing it again uncertain of what to do in this situation. On the one hand he was always happy to meet new people, but on the other hand he wasn’t sure if these people were dangerous. Heck, he wasn’t even sure how they got into his living room without him noticing. He stole a glance at his front door which was still securely closed, “Uh… Hello?” He sent them two intruders an awkward wave, but they didn’t even glance up in his direction.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“We should go back inside and talk about this before we decide on a course of action.” The blue one said.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven hopped off his bed and started to walk toward his uninvited guests.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The red one stomped her foot on the ground impatiently,“What is there to talk about Sapphire! She’s a shatterer! And he’s working for her!” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He was standing right next to them, but they hadn’t acknowledged him yet.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“We don’t know that.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“... Excuse me?” He asked as he stepped in between the feuding duo. Their eyes both snapped onto him. At least he assumed they did since it was hard to tell exactly what the blue girl, Sapphire, was looking at. “Hello.” He waved and sent them a hesitant but friendly smile, “How did you get into my house?” He asked.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The poofy haired girl's mouth opened and closed in rapid succession as she sputtered to find the right words to say, “Great!” She shouted, throwing her hands in the arm, “This is just perfect.” She grumbled as she turned away from him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Hello, Steven.” Sapphire greeted him unfazed by her companions rage.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl blinked as the light from the warp pad dissipated around them. As silly as it sounded she had been expecting Twoie to go to some sort of secret lair or at the very least a base of operations instead they were in the middle of nowhere.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She took hesitant steps after him but was in constant fear that they would be discovered. The only thing around them was trees and the open field so if he decided to look over his shoulder then they would be caught for sure. The dirt in the area was much softer than the hard and dry floor of the kindergarten so Twoie was able to move at a faster pace. They went down a couple of hills and just as she was about to decide to head back before they were caught she saw it. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The destination where Twoie was headed. From the distance it appeared to be a small wooden shack, but as they came closer she realized that it was a barn. A place where humans typically raised animals and grew crops. What reason could he have for coming here?</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She glanced at Amethyst whose face was pensive as she took in the sight of the barn. Twoie’s steady pace halted as he reached the large wooden doors of the barn. She pulled Amethyst back into the neglected field of overgrown crops and crouched in order to make herself harder to detect.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She was still as she watched Twoie place the injector on the ground next to him before turning to open the door. The door opened to reveal junk. Her frustration grew at the lack of anything incriminating. Did he simply enjoy collecting useless garbage? She stopped herself from pulling her hair out in frustration. Amethyst was right none of this made any sense.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t understand. Why is he collecting garbage?” she mumbled as she peered inside the barn for anything significant.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She could make out piles of scrap metal, old bikes, mounds of clothing, and even some faded portraits. It was a strange collection of items that was made stranger by the addition of a drill head from the kindergarten.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“He has a phone? Do you think he’s trying to contact his leaders or something?” Amethyst asked.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She turned to look at where Amethyst was pointing, “Maybe…” Twoie held a rectangular shaped object that she recognized as a phone in his hand. He was muttering under his breath as he walked around the barn. He glanced at his phone every so often as he inspected the piles of junk around him. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>A few minutes passed before he put his phone away in his pocket and nodded to himself seemingly satisfied with his collection. He exited the barn and closed the door and secured it with a lock that she had not seen before. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>They could probably break into the barn and get a better look at what he was storing, but they couldn’t do so without being caught. If the lock were broken or if there was a big whole in one of the walls then he would know that someone had been following him and they might never find out what his plans are.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie began to stroll back to the direction of the warp pad that brought them there, but she found that she was too tired to follow after him. Amethyst appeared to be feeling the same way because she let out a frustrated sigh the second that Twoie was out of hearing range.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Is he messing with us or something?’ she asked as she splayed out her body on a patch of grass. “He didn’t even have anything cool in there.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She groaned in defeat as she plopped down next to her teammate, “I really thought that we could catch him doing </span>
  <em>
    <span>something</span>
  </em>
  <span>.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Amethyst shot up into a sitting position, “No!,” she said as she pounded her fist into her open hand, “we’re going to get this guy!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“But how? We followed him around for hours an-”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Maybe we don’t have to follow him around.” Amethyst grinned as her eyes lit up in realization. “He had a phone right?” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Her eyes widened as she realized where Amethyst was going, “If we can get his phone…”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Then we’ll be able to find out what he’s after! He’s gotta have information about his mission or maybe even his exact orders, right?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She smiled, “Amethyst, you’re a genius!”</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0011"><h2>11. Maximum Capacity</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Steven meets Ruby and Sapphire. Twoie is feeling Homesick.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>He stood frozen unsure of what to do. The two other occupants in the room had their eyes glued to his face, patiently awaiting his reaction. A glint of light that bounced off of something in the red girl's hand caught his attention.</p><p>He blinked. Was that a gemstone in her hand? If these two were gems then they could be dangerous. The last gem he met, Lapis, had stolen the earth's ocean in an attempt to go back home. Maybe these gems were also trying to get home.</p><p>He stole a glance at the temple door where he last saw Garnet go. He debated whether to call her for help, but decided not to when he recalled how angry she had been when he tried to free Lapis from the mirror. He didn't want her to attack these two gems; they didn't seem threatening at all. They were even around the same height as him! He could handle the situation himself.</p><p>With his mind made up he turned toward Sapphire. She was the more relaxed of the two and he already knew her name.</p><p>"Hi, I'm Steven." he offered her his hand, "But you already knew that?" he half stated, half asked.</p><p>An amused smile made its way onto her face as she shook his hand, "I'm Sapphire and she-" Sapphire gestured toward her angry companion who was seated on the floor with her back facing them, "-is Ruby."</p><p>He relaxed at her friendly behavior and beamed at her. His smile faltered slightly at Ruby's drooped shoulders and incoherent grumbling.</p><p>"Are you ok?" he reached over and placed a hand on her shoulder, but recoiled in pain when an intense sensation of heat shot through his hand. It was like touching a stove, "Hot! Hot!" he yelped as he blew on his stinging hand.</p><p>Ruby turned, eyes wide staring at the faint burn mark on the palm of his hand, "I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" she sputtered as she stood and rushed to inspect his hand. She stopped herself when she noticed her still smoking skin.</p><p>He was taken aback by the genuine remorse on her face, "It's ok." he rushed to reassure her, "Nothing a little healing spit won't fix." he said as he licked the burn on his palm. He showed her his hand as his powers kicked him, "See? Nothing to worry about."</p><p>Relief washed over Ruby's face before she turned an even darker shade of red, "Don't look at me!" she shouted, turning away from him. "This is all wrong!" she pulled at her hair.</p><p>Steven looked to Sapphire for guidance, "Is she ok?" he asked.</p><p>A burst of light engulfed the room and interrupted whatever Sapphire was going to say. The light faded to reveal Twoie standing on top of the warp pad.</p><p>"You're back!" he shouted, rushing over to wrap him in a hug.</p><p>He frowned when Twoie tensed in their embrace and followed his concerned gaze over to where his two guests were standing, "Ruby?! Sapphire?! What's going on?"</p><p>"You know them?!"</p><p>"Stay away from him! You shatterer!" Ruby roared as she barreled toward them.</p><p>He was pulled behind Twoie who summoned his shield and took a defensive stance. His eyes widened when Ruby's fist crashed into the large shield. Smoke rose from the impact. For someone so small she was really strong.</p><p>"Hey! Stop!"</p><p>Twoie protests were ignored as Ruby continued to bang against the shield.</p><p>Her smoking fists crashed into the shield, each hit causing Twoie's arm to shake. She had literal smoke coming out of her ears and the floor under her was scorched black.</p><p>A firm voice cut through the chaos, "<em>Ruby</em>." Sapphire reprimanded.</p><p>Ruby paused her barrage of attacks for a brief moment and turned to look at Sapphire, "He's working for <em>her</em>! How can you just stand there when he's so close to Steven!"</p><p>His confusion grew at her statement. What did he have to do with any of this? He had never even met them before today.</p><p>Sapphire remained unfazed throughout all of her frantic shouting, "Ruby, we discussed this. You need to calm do-"</p><p>"<em>Arggh</em>!" Ruby interrupted her with a thunderous shout. She summoned gauntlets around her fists and pounded on the shield with renewed vigor, "How's <em>this </em>for calm?!"</p><p>
  <em>Bang.</em>
</p><p>Crystals of ice formed under Sapphire and began to spread across the living room floor. He shivered when he felt the temperature of the room drop a few degrees. Did Sapphire have ice powers?</p><p>
  <em>Bang.</em>
</p><p>"Why are you attacking me?!"</p><p>
  <em>Bang.</em>
</p><p>"You know why!"</p><p>He gnawed his bottom lip. This was getting out of control. Ruby wasn't calming down and he was pretty sure the floor under her was on fire. Meanwhile Sapphire had completely checked out of the situation. She was now sitting on his partially frozen couch muttering something about the path of fate.</p><p>His mind raced to find a way to end the conflict, but he wasn't even sure why Ruby was attacking them. He tried getting Ruby's attention, but she was completely focused on breaking through Twoie's defenses.</p><p>An idea struck him as he recalled how upset Ruby had been when she accidentally burned him. Could it be that she was only mad at Twoie? It made sense since she only started attacking when he arrived.</p><p>He took a deep breath before sprinting in front of Twoie, "Please, no more fighting!"</p><p>His eyes were shut as he braced himself for an attack. When no pain arrived he opened his eyes. Ruby's fist stood frozen mere inches away from his face. He was right! Ruby didn't want to hurt him.</p><p>"We don't have to fight, Ruby. Just tell us what's wrong and maybe we can help you."</p><p>Ruby stared at him before lowering her fists and putting away her gauntlets. She bit down on her fist and let out an enraged scream. She still had a scowl on her face as she glared daggers at Twoie, but had otherwise calmed down.</p><p>He slowly stepped away from Twoie who still held his shield in front of him. He relaxed when Ruby didn't immediately start attacking. His relief was short lived as she kicked Twoie in the shin a few moments later.</p><p>Twoie yelped in pain and rubbed at his injured leg "Ow! That hurt!"</p><p>"That's the point!" Ruby yelled as she continued to attack Twoie's exposed shins.</p><p>He moved to step in front of them again, but Twoie had other ideas.</p><p>"Alright that's it." Twoie said as he got rid of his shield.</p><p>He lifted up Ruby by the back of her shirt and held her at arm's length. She swung her limbs around in an attempt to hit Twoie.</p><p>"Put me down!"</p><p>Twoie ignored her angry shouts and encased her in a large pink bubble. Her muffled screams could still be heard as she pounded against the bubble.</p><p>"There, that should take care of her for a while."</p><p>"Why is she mad at us?" he asked.</p><p>"I don't know." he turned to Sapphire who was still seated on his couch. "What's going on Sapphire? Why did you unfuse?"</p><p>"Unfuse?" he asked.</p><p>"Oh! That's right you don't know about…"</p><p>"About what?"</p><p>Twoie hesitated, his eyes darted between Sapphire and Ruby, "I shouldn't be the one to tell you."</p><p>Frustration started to build up at yet another thing he wasn't allowed to know about, "Tell me what?!" he pleaded.</p><p>"Steven." Sapphire piped up. "Ruby and I are the two components that make up Garnet."</p><p>"Garnet is… a fusion?" He turned to Twoie to confirm this.</p><p>He nodded, "I would have told you sooner, but Garnet wanted to tell you on your birthday." he explained.</p><p>He gawked at Sapphire as his brain finally processed the information, "Garnet's a fusion!"</p><p>He flattered as he approached her. He knew Garnet, but he had never met Sapphire and he didn't know how to act around her.</p><p>"Uh… Hi. I… Did I make a good first impression?"</p><p>Sapphire's laugh was melodic, "Steven I already love you." she pulled him into a hug.</p><p>He chuckled and returned her embrace, feeling silly for ever hesitating. Even if Sapphire wasn't Garnet she was still a part of her. Of course Sapphire cared about him.</p><p>"Wait, Twoie how did you find out Garnet was a fusion? Did it happen on your birthday?"</p><p>Twoie's eyes glazed over and his cheeks flushed a vibrant pink. His mind flashed back to last night to a Twoie who had looked so defeated, "<em>Please. Just leave."</em> he had told him before kicking him out of the dream.</p><p>His voice betrayed his concern, "Twoie?"</p><p>Twoie blinked, his cheeks returning to their normal color. He let out a tired chuckle, "Yeah, something like that."</p><p>He wanted to ask him more, but decided to focus on Ruby who was still trapped in a bubble.</p><p>She had stopped punching it and was now seated inside of it, silently fuming. He was about to ask if they could let her out, but before he could the warp pad activated. Pearl and Amethyst had come home.</p><p>He opened his mouth to greet them but when they caught sight of Ruby and Sapphire they freaked out. There was a lot of shouting and confusion as everyone tried to figure out what was going on. Their attention immediately went to the bubble where Ruby was still trapped.</p><p>"What have you done to Garnet?!"</p><p>"Why'd you put Ruby in a bubble?!"</p><p>Steven tried to explain, but they kept shouting over him. Twoie barely even tried to defend himself. He stood patiently as they yelled accusations at him. His face was blank as he turned away from the gems and started to walk toward the door of the house.</p><p>"Dude, don't walk away from us!" Amethyst called after him, but Twoie ignored her and kept walking.</p><p>Twoie stopped at the door, "I didn't do anything, but I don't want to make anyone uncomfortable by being here. I'm going to go." he opened the door and left.</p><p> </p><hr/><p> </p><p>Twoie sat on the beach near where he first met Connie. It was his favorite spot on the beach and the only place that popped into his head when he decided to leave the house.</p><p>He felt suffocated in his own home. It was fine when it was just him and Steven, but now the gems rarely left them alone together. There was always someone around, watching him like he was some sort of criminal and every time anything went wrong he was always the one they blamed.</p><p>He wasn't sure of the exact reason for why Garnet had split, but he assumed it had something to do with him. Sapphire seemed to tolerate him, but Ruby absolutely hated him. She had called him a shatterer and attacked him. Their mixed feelings on him must have been enough to cause them to unfuse.</p><p>He pulled his phone out of his pocket and browsed some of his photos. He missed his family. The gems in the house looked like his family, but they didn't act like it. It hurt when they spoke poorly of him, but it hurt even more when they ignored him. He had barely spent any time with them because they would just avoid any kind of interaction with him. They only talked to him because it made Steven happy.</p><p>"Twoie!" Steven collected his breath before continuing, "Twoie, I'm sorry th-"</p><p>"You don't have to apologize, Steven. I just wanted some fresh air."</p><p>"But the gems were being mean to you again."</p><p>He stayed silent as he didn't know how to respond. He knew that Steven wanted them to get along, but he couldn't control how the gems felt about him. He sighed and turned his attention back to his phone.</p><p>It was a while before Steven took a seat on the sand next to him, "Are you looking at pictures?" he asked.</p><p>He hesitated, looking at the picture on his screen. It was taken in Little Homeworld, but it was difficult to make out any buildings so he figured it was safe to show Steven. He tilted the screen to give Steven a better view. It was a group photo with him and all the gems. They were all flashing large smiles at the camera, except for Amethyst who had her tongue out in a goofy expression.</p><p>Stars appeared in Steven's eyes, "We all look super cool!"</p><p>Before he could stop him Steven had swiped to the next picture.</p><p>"Is that Connie?"</p><p>It was a picture of him blushing madly, his free hand covered his face in embarrassment and his head was turned away from the camera. Connie was kneeling down in front of him, gently holding his hand and pressing her lips against it.</p><p>He had forgotten who took the picture only remembering how embarrassed he was after. Connie called him 'My Diamond' in front of the other Diamonds and liked to make a big show out of being his knight. She was joking when she did so, but the Diamonds loved her displays of loyalty and they were surprisingly effective at getting the Diamonds to warm up to Connie.</p><p>He quickly swiped to the next picture.</p><p>It was another one of Connie. She stood proudly next to Pearl, gripping a large pink sword. They both wore large grins.</p><p>"Is that a sword?! Can you use a sword?!" he asked, eyes lighting up in excitement.</p><p>"I can but I'm not as good as Connie. I prefer to avoid fighting if I can."</p><p>Steven swiped to the next picture, "Who is that?" He pointed at Peridot who was dressed in a red bowtie and was posing in front of one of her meep morps.</p><p>He fumbled with his phone as he rushed to turn off the screen, "Nobody! I…. It's just a friend."</p><p>He put his phone away and took in the view of the ocean. Steven noticed his reluctance to talk about the future and thankfully did not ask any more questions about Peridot.</p><p>"Do you miss them?" Steven asked.</p><p>"Yeah, a lot." he confessed. "It's weird I'm home, but I feel homesick."</p><p>A grin made its way to Steven's face, "I just had a great idea!" he exclaimed.</p><p> </p><hr/><p> </p><p>Running a car wash in somewhere as small as Beach City was not the most interesting of professions. Even on days where he had a lot of business he would still have hours where nothing happened. Greg didn't mind the lack of work. In fact, he actually enjoyed it because it gave him ample time to work on his music.</p><p>When he wasn't working on his music he took long naps under the warmth of the sun. It was during one of these peaceful naps that he was shaken awake.</p><p>"-ake up! Dad!"</p><p>He yawned, "I'm up. I'm up." he mumbled.</p><p>He opened his bleary eyes and blinked a few times as his eyes adjusted to the sun. His mood lifted at his son's presence. He loved his naps, but he loved spending time with his son even more.</p><p>"Hey, Stchu-ball. Come to visit your old man?"</p><p>"Dad! Dad!" Steven shouted, bouncing up and down.</p><p>"I'm not that far away Steven."</p><p>"I want to introduce you to someone!" Steven said not lowering his volume in the slightest.</p><p>That's when he noticed the stranger standing closely behind Steven almost as if he was trying to hide which was comical because he towered over Steven. He blinked as he took in the strangers outfit. Were those his old clothes?</p><p>Steven must have noticed his stares because he pushed the stranger in front of him, "C'mon, Twoie!"</p><p>Twoie stood stiff and refused to meet his eyes. He opened his mouth to introduce himself, but his voice caught in his throat when he got a good look at his face. The mop of curly black hair, his eyes that almost seemed to sparkle, that awkward but familiar smile.</p><p>His eyes darted back and forth between Twoie and Steven. It couldn't be! He rubbed his eyes, but that did not change the fact that he was looking at his son. Even if he was much taller and older than he was used to.</p><p>"Steven?!" he sputtered. "Is this some sort of prank? Amethyst is that you?"</p><p>Shape shifting was something that he was uncomfortable with, but he knew that Amethyst enjoyed doing it. It was easy to tell if it was her because she was always some shade of purple, but the person standing in front of him wasn't purple in the slightest. He was definitely human.</p><p>Steven's grin grew, "Twoie is me from the future! Isn't that awesome!"</p><p>Greg liked to consider himself an open minded person. He was used to strange things. You had to be when you were in love with someone like Rose, but even he could not hide the shock on his face at the realization that his teenage son from the future was standing right in front of him.</p><p>"How did you get so tall?!"</p><p>Twoie chuckled his tense posture relaxing a bit, "That's the first thing you ask?"</p><p>It was the first time Greg had heard him speak. His voice was deep and calming.</p><p>"This is unbelievable!" He rose from his chair and moved to inspect his future son, "You really are Steven!"</p><p>Relief washed over the teenager's face, something which he found odd, but he didn't question it as he was still reeling at his presence.</p><p>"Yeah, that's me. I go by Twoie now though."</p><p>"Twoie?"</p><p>"It's short for Steven two." his younger son piped up, "I'm Steven one and he's-" he pointed at his older self. "-is Steven two or Twoie." he explained.</p><p>"I… How are you even here?"</p><p>He shrugged, "Gem stuff."</p><p>He nodded, grateful for the simple explanation. He wasn't the smartest of people and events surrounding the gems tended to be complicated.</p><p>"Look at you! You're all grown up Stchu-ball."</p><p>He engulfed his older son into a hug and frowned when he felt Twoie stiffen in his embrace. It wasn't like Steven to shy away from hugs. He was a very affectionate child. As if to prove his point Steven hugged both of them.</p><p>"Group hug!" he exclaimed.</p><p> </p><hr/><p> </p><p>Steven thought that spending time with his dad would make him feel less homesick. Twoie had been against the idea because he didn't want to make his dad uncomfortable. Steven insisted that his dad would be thrilled to see him and he eventually agreed to go because he also missed his dad.</p><p>Being away from Ruby and Sapphire was also something he was grateful for. When he and Steven went to inform the gems of their plans Ruby had freaked out again. Pearl and Amethyst had to restrain her while Sapphire attempted to calm her down.</p><p>It took Steven talking to Ruby for her to finally calm down. Steven looked almost hesitant to leave them behind. He couldn't tell if it was because he was worried about them or if he just liked spending time around Ruby and Sapphire.</p><p>He strummed the guitar his dad lent him. He had to tune it and it was a bit old, but it worked just fine. Playing music with his dad and Steven was something that he didn't know he needed. When he was with his dad he could almost pretend that he was back in his time.</p><p>"And I really like the ones that shoot up kind of spirally with the long tails. What about you, Twoie?" Steven asked.</p><p>"What?"</p><p>"Which fireworks are your favorite?"</p><p>"Oh. Uh, I don't know. I haven't really been to the New Years fireworks in a while."</p><p>"Really?" his dad looked surprised. "But they're your favorite part of New Years."</p><p>He plucked a few guitar strings. He had been off planet for a few years with only brief visits to Beach City and when he finally did come back he had been so busy he hadn't had time to go watch fireworks. Did he even like fireworks anymore?</p><p>"I've just been busy with… future stuff."</p><p>"How is the future?" his dad asked.</p><p>He hadn't asked him about the future before even though Twoie could tell that he was really curious. He didn't want to worry his dad about gem related events. He grinned as he thought of something he could reveal.</p><p>"Well… it's pretty great actually. Especially for you."</p><p>Steven gasped, "What happens to dad? Does he get really famous?"</p><p>"Not exactly, but he does get really rich."</p><p>His grin widened when his dad sputtered in shock, "Rich? Are you serious?"</p><p>"Yup, one of your old songs is going to get used in a commercial and you're going to get a <em>lot </em>of money because of it."</p><p>Steven's eyes sparkled, "Woah! Dad, you're going to be rich soon! We can go to a fancy hotel and get tuxedos."</p><p>"I can't believe it! Wait, what song was it?"</p><p>"Hmm… I don't remember the name. It was the one you sang to mom when you first met."</p><p>"Comet?!"</p><p>He nodded, "Yeah, that's it!"</p><p>"Comet? I never heard you sing that song before dad."</p><p>His dad rubbed his neck, "It's been a while since I last played it."</p><p>"Can you play it now?" Steven eagerly asked.</p><p>"I don't really remember all of the lyrics, but I should still have some of my old CDs in my storage unit."</p><p>"Then what are we waiting for!" Steven urged tugging them both away from the carwash. "Let's go find it."</p><p>Upon opening the storage unit an avalanche of junk fell on top of them. Twoie was slightly impressed at his dad's ability to pack so much stuff in such a small space. When Steven realized how bad the situation was he ran off and came back with back up in the form of Amethyst.</p><p>Sifting through his dad's old stuff was more fun than he expected it to be even with Amethyst constantly sending him suspicious looks. Steven had called it a 'dad museum' a term which made sense when you got a good look at the items stored there. There were boxes of things you would expect to find in a storage unit like old clothes, books, and furniture. The deeper he went into the unit the stranger the items became. T-shirt cannons, new golf clubs, climbing equipment, and other things that he knew his dad would never use.</p><p>He stumbled over something hard. He reached down to inspect the object. It was a dusty VHS tape of 'Lil' Butler', the sitcom that his dad was once obsessed with. There was a box full of them. He looked around for somewhere to hide them before Amethyst or his dad saw them, but he wasn't fast enough.</p><p>Amethyst snatched the VHS out of his hands, "This definitely doesn't belong with all this junk."</p><p>He winced when she showed the tape to his dad, whose eyes lit up in excitement. There was no way he would convince them to not watch the show.</p><p>"Is that... 'Li'l Butler'? Oh, where have you been all these years?!"</p><p>Amethyst was beaming with excitement as she explained the show to Steven. She ran over to an old VHS player that was sitting in the corner of the storage unit. She convinced his dad to watch the show with her.</p><p>"Okay, but just one." he said.</p><p>Twoie sighed knowing how untrue that statement would become.</p><p> </p><hr/><p> </p><p>"Happy New Year, Steven! How's my volume?"</p><p>The cool breeze tickled his skin. He pulled the sweater that Steven had gotten from the storage unit on tighter and watched as Steven showed Pearl how to make noise using pots and pans. She wasn't very good at it. He could barely hear her and he was sitting next to her, but Steven seemed happy at her attempts.</p><p>It was a beautiful night, but he had trouble enjoying it due to a certain fusions absence. Steven was excited to spend time around Ruby and Sapphire. They both enjoyed his company, but would still not talk to each other. It was worse when he was around so he had been avoiding being in the house all day. He had hoped that Garnet would be back by now, but they had still not fused and it was starting to worry him. He didn't know the exact timeframe, but he knew that Jasper would be arriving soon.</p><p>He chewed the inside of his cheek. The last time she arrived she had mistaken him for his mother and beaten him to a pulp.</p><p>"<em>I don't get what you're planning, Rose. But look?! Your base is taken. Your armies are ruined. You have failed!"</em></p><p>He woke up hours later in a prison cell, headed for Homeworld. The only reason they managed to escape was because Garnet defeated Jasper allowing them to take control of the ship, but if she wasn't here then there was no telling what would happen.</p><p>He was pulled out of his thoughts by Steven, "I'm going to go look for dad." he said, moving to stand up.</p><p>"Why don't you stay here with Pearl and I'll go get him." he offered.</p><p>He knew that they were still watching 'Lil' Butler' and that they had lost track of time. He hoped that Amethyst wouldn't shapeshift into Rose like she had in his time, but he didn't want Steven to come in case she did.</p><p>"Ok, but come back soon."</p><p>He nodded and took off toward the direction of the storage unit. His footsteps slowed the closer he got to his destination. He hovered near the entrance and hesitated in going inside.</p><p>The faint glow from the television illuminated the room. He could make out the sound of their muffled voices. He took a deep breath before heading inside.</p><p>His eyes adjusted to the dimly lit room. Amethyst hadn't shape shifted, but she was shouting at his dad.</p><p>His dad's voice, usually warm and playful, was now deep and stern, "Don't do this, Amethyst. Seriously."</p><p>"I bet you'd stay for her."</p><p>"You <em>wouldn't.</em>"</p><p>"What? Do this?"</p><p>It was like watching a train wreck. He wanted to look away, but his eyes refused to listen. Her whole body was engulfed in a bright light. He could make out curls on the top of her head as she grew in height. When the light faded Amethyst stood in a dress and with a familiar gem on her stomach.</p><p>The horror on his dad's face reflected his own feelings. His dad squeezed his eyes shut and turned away from Amethyst. He wanted to do the same, but he stood frozen, wishing that he was somewhere else.</p><p>"Hey, Greg. Turn around. Check it out!" Amethyst taunted.</p><p>"I know you're doing it! I want to be friends again. I really do. But I can't let you do this to me again!"</p><p>The TV flickered to static.</p><p>"Amethyst. Stop."</p><p>She pulled her attention away from his dad, but still held her new form, "Ugh, it's you. Why don't you mind your own business?" she snarked.</p><p>His fists shook at his sides and he could tell by the faint light around him that he was starting to turn Pink. He needed to calm down.</p><p>"Amethyst. That's enough." he spat through gritted teeth.</p><p>She eyed his glowing body with disgust, "What's wrong don't you like my new look?" she mocked, batting her eyelashes at him.</p><p>He grinded his teeth together and took deep breaths in an attempt to calm himself. His blood boiled, but he couldn't lose control.</p><p>"I'm warning you. Stop."</p><p>She opened her arms mockingly, "C'mon, don't you wanna give mommy a hug?"</p><p>Something inside him snapped. Even without looking he knew that his whole body was now Pink. All of the rage and frustration that he had been trying to suppress broke free.</p><p>"<em>That's enough</em>!" He roared, his fist colliding with her body.</p><p>She disappeared in a puff of smoke. The sound of the purple gemstone clattering onto the ground echoed throughout the storage unit.</p><p>A soft, "T… Twoie?" caused his heart to drop.</p><p>It was Steven.</p><p>His gaze was fixed on the shattered screen of the television. He didn't dare turn around. He couldn't bear to see the look of fear that he knew must be plastered on Steven's face.</p><p>His dad who had witnessed everything eyed Amethysts gem that lay still on the floor in shock. The room felt too small. Air entered his lungs, but it felt like he was drowning.</p><p>His pink hand shook in the empty space where Amethyst once stood. He needed to get away. So, he did the only thing that he could. He ran.</p><p>He heard voices calling out to him, but he didn't stop. He pumped his legs harder and harder, willing them to take him far away.</p><p>He kept running.</p><p> </p><hr/><p> </p><p>Steven's eyes scanned the same sentence for what felt like the hundredth time. No matter how many times he read it his mind refused to process the words.</p><p>He gave up on trying to distract himself and closed the book shut. His gaze wandered to the front door. He had hoped Twoie would come back after a few hours, but that had been over a week ago.</p><p>After the incident in the storage unit. Twoie had run off and no one had seen him since. Amethyst took three days to reform and when she finally did she refused to talk about what had happened.</p><p>The only good thing that had come of the situation was Garnet. Ruby and Sapphire had fused a few hours after Twoie had gone missing. Garnet was more relaxed now that Twoie was gone. Pearl and Amethyst almost seemed relieved that he was gone. He and his dad were the only ones who seemed to care about Twoie. The gems would deny it and claim that they cared too, but he could tell that they weren't being honest.</p><p>The warp pad activated and brought in all three of the crystal gems. His spirits fell at the lack of Twoie's presence. He had been so sure that they would find him today.</p><p>"Steven, why are you still awake? We sent you home hours ago." Pearl asked him.</p><p>He ignored her question, "Did you find him?" he asked even though he knew the answer.</p><p>It was silent as his three guardians shared concerned looks. They were worried about him. That fact would have warmed his heart a week ago, but now he couldn't help but resent them for it. He was fine. Twoie was the one who was missing! They should have been worried about him.</p><p>Garnet took a seat on the couch next to him, "Steven, I know you're worried about Twoie, but you need to rest."</p><p>He wanted to protest and stay up in hopes that Twoie would come home, but he knew he would only worry the gems more.</p><p>His shoulders drooped in defeat, "Ok," he conceded. "But you have to keep looking for him."</p><p>"We will."</p><p>He nodded satisfied with her answer and headed to his bedroom.</p><p>"Y'know…" Amethyst said, he paused mid step, "Maybe we could figure out where he went if we looked at his phone."</p><p>Another thing that had changed with Twoie's absences was the gems obsession with his phone. Twoie had accidentally left his phone when he went to go retrieve his dad that night. He had hid it in his room when he caught Pearl trying to unlock it. This had led to them pestering him about the phone almost daily. He wasn't sure why they wanted it, but he was certain that it didn't involve finding Twoie.</p><p>"I told you I'm not unlocking it." he grumbled as he entered his room and crawled into his bed.</p><p>This time it was Pearl who spoke to him, "Steven, I know you do not want to invade Twoie's privacy, but It could give us information of his whereabo-"</p><p>"I said no!" he snapped, wrapping himself up in his comforter.</p><p>She let out a sigh, "Goodnight, Steven."</p><p>He didn't answer.</p><p> </p><hr/><p> </p><p>The soft orange of the sunset bounced off of the brightly colored van. She was flooded with relief at the sight of the Twoie. Steven fluctuated between being irritable and depressed the whole time he had been missing. Hopefully he would return to normal when she brought Twoie back.</p><p>She suppressed her frustration when she caught sight of Greg. He should have told them that he had found Twoie. She pushed her feelings aside and focused on bringing Twoie back.</p><p>He was seated next to Greg on the edge of a cliff that overlooked all of beach city. A box of half eaten pizza lay between them along with dozens of comic books strewn across the grass. Her pace slowed as she approached them</p><p>"Twoie." she said when she was a feet feet behind them.</p><p>They both turned at the sound of her voice. Greg patted Twoie on the back before standing to leave.</p><p>"Well, I better get back to the carwash. I'm sure you guys have a lot to talk about." Her face must have betrayed the confusion that she was feeling because Greg continued, "Twoie here has something he wants to tell you. Isn't that right?" he asked while turning to look at the nervous teenager.</p><p>Twoie grabbed Greg's hand, "Dad, wait. Don-"</p><p>Greg chuckled before kneeling down in front of his son, "You'll be fine Stchu-ball." he reassured.</p><p>Twoie's shoulders sagged, but he nodded and let his father leave. They both watched in silence as he got into his van and drove away. The sounds of the van faded into the distance as she drifted over to where he was seated.</p><p>Her movements were calm and slow as not to startle him. Twoie looked ready to run and she suspected the only reason he hadn't was because of what Greg had told him. She took a seat on the soft grass next to him.</p><p>It was quiet for a while as she waited for him to speak. Minutes ticked by with Twoie saying nothing.</p><p>"Steven has been worried about you." She said breaking the tense silence.</p><p>He let out a humorless chuckle, "Just Steven, huh?" he murmured, his gaze fixed on the stunning view of the horizon.</p><p>She blanched when she realized her mistake, "We were <em>all</em> worried about you." she rushed to correct herself.</p><p>"Steven isn't here, you can stop pretending you care about me."</p><p>"I… w-what are you talking about?"</p><p>He turned toward her, his eyes boring into hers, "I know you guys all hate me."</p><p>"N-no that's not… why would-"</p><p>"You guys don't think I'm Steven."</p><p>Her hand gripped the grass next to her as she struggled to come up with a response.</p><p>"You probably think I'm a spy sent by Homeworld or something."</p><p>Her body tensed, "Are you?" she asked, preparing herself for a fight.</p><p>"No, I'm not." he sighed, turning his intense gaze back to the sunset, "I'm such an idiot. I should have known that showing up dressed like <em>that</em>… What was I thinking?! Now Steven and Amethyst probably hate me. Garnet unfused and even if she was here she wouldn't want to be around me."</p><p>"What is the real reason you were dressed like-" her hands had made their way up to her throat and she had to force them away from her mouth. "-... <em>her</em>."</p><p>She wanted to believe that she really was talking to an older Steven and not some soldier sent by Homeworld, but she couldn't get the image of him dressed like Pink out of her head.</p><p>"I'm sorry." he surprised her by apologizing, "I wanted to say something sooner, but I didn't want to risk weakening the team. Especially with what's about to come…" he laughed bitterly, "I guess I couldn't even do that right. Garnet unfused because of me."</p><p>"What are you talk-"</p><p>"I'm not making any sense am I?" he interrupted, his eyes once again met hers, "I guess there's no point in lying now. I know the truth about Rose. Who she <em>really</em> was."</p><p>"I…" her hands clamped over her mouth.</p><p>"Rose Quartz, the leader of the Crystal Gem rebellion and Pink Diamond were the same person."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0012"><h2>12. Steven</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Twoie finally goes home.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Sorry for not updating! I've been dealing with some family issues and its causing me to have writers block. This chapter is a bit on the short side, but I'm going to try to post another one soon.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>He was glad it was Pearl who found him. If it had been Garnet or Amethyst he probably would have kept quiet in fear they wouldn’t believe him, but he knew that Pearl would understand. She had to understand.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Rose Quartz, the leader of the Crystal Gem rebellion and Pink Diamond were the same person.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Saying it out loud was like a weight being lifted off his shoulders. His stomach churned as he waited for Pearl to respond. The longer she stayed silent the more painful the ache in his chest became.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Her hands had fallen off of her mouth and now lay limp in her lap. Her mouth opened and closed, but no words came out. Her eyes were glazed over and distant. He moved to place a comforting hand on her shoulder.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Pearl?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>She jumped back as if she had been shocked. Her eyes wide and frantic as they scanned her surroundings. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Steven….” she murmured, the fog finally lifting from her eyes.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>His throat tightened and his eyes stung at the use of his real name. He blinked hard, preventing any tears from spilling. He swallowed the lump in his throat before speaking.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I….” he struggled to find the right words to say.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>There was so much he wanted to tell her about: Jasper, Malachite, the cluster, and the Diamonds. He had made detailed plans about how to fix everything before it started, but found that he could not recall those plans now. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>The world around him disappeared. It was white. Everything around him was a blinding white. His stomach turned to ice when he met her intimidating gaze.</em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>She smirked,“You can hide from yourself, but you can't hide from me, Pink.”</em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>A large white hand reached out toward him. He froze, watching helplessly as the hand came closer.</em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>“Now, Starlight... This has gone on long enough.”</em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>He blinked as delicate fingers brushed against his damp cheeks. Pearl was watching him, a small frown on her face. She moved to give him a hug. She hesitated, guilt dancing in her eyes. Before he could stop himself he dove into her arms burying his face in the crook of her neck.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Oh, Steven…” she murmured, her voice soft and calming like a lullaby.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>His shoulders shake with each gasping breath as he struggles to tell her everything about the future. The information he gives is disjointed and muffled by his sobs. She holds him, gently caressing his hair. The soft reassurances helped calm his frayed nerves.</p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>Steven nodded absentmindedly to whatever Amethyst was telling him. Garnet and Pearl had gone out to search for Twoie while Amethyst stayed behind to take care of him. The gems have been worried about him and were constantly trying to get him to stop looking for Twoie.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Yo, Steven check this out.” Amethyst said, shapeshifting into a lion. “I guess you can say I’m just lion around.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>He stared at her, face blank, before turning his attention back to the warp pad.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I said I’m just lion arou-”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“What happened that night with Twoie?” he interrupted.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Amethyst shapeshifted back to normal, surprise flashing across her features, “Nothing happened. Just forget about it.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“But you got poofed! Why were you and Twoie fighting?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Amethyst huffed in annoyance before taking a seat next to him. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Look, Steven…” she began, eyes focusing on a spot on the wall. “Twoie and I both did some stuff that night we probably shouldn’t have.” she explained, guilt bleeding into her voice.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Is that why Twoie poofed you? Because of something you did?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Do you trust Twoie?” Amethyst asked, after a beat of silence.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>His answer was instant, “Of course I do! He’s me. Don’t you trust him?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>She was silent for a moment, gnawing on her bottom lip. He could practically see the internal debate raging inside of her head as her eyes flitted across the room, focusing on anything other than him.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“No, I don’t trust him.” she confessed, the next words spilling out of her mouth in a rush. “Garnet and Pearl didn’t want to risk getting his suspicions up by telling you, but you deserve to know the truth. I don’t think Twoie is who he says he is.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Her words hung in the air, the tension in the room palpable as she eyed him warily. She was probably worried he would take her accusation badly. He should have been surprised by her revelation, but he had known that the gems disliked his older self for some time now. It was obvious in the way they treated him. They rarely spoke, they constantly avoided him, and they were quick to accuse him every time something went wrong.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>What did surprise him about her revelation was their reason for distrusting Twoie; they didn’t believe he was from the future. He almost laughed at the ridiculousness of her accusation because Twoie was so obviously him. Aside from looking similar, the gems on their stomachs were identical.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>At his lack of response, she continued, “I know it’s hard to believe, but you’ve got to trust me. Pearl and I were following him around and he was definitely up to something. If we just had his phone maybe we could figure out what it is.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>A spark of anger flared up inside of him as he shouted, “That’s why you guys have been so obsessed with his phone! You don’t care about finding him at all!”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Amethysts flinched, a look of guilt flashing over her features but she didn’t deny his claims.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Maybe I’m wrong and Twoie really is you from the future or maybe I’m right and he is an imposter, but we won’t know that for sure until we look at his phone.” she reasoned.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>His protests died in his throat when he met her determined gaze. He knew that Amethyst along with the other gems would not rest until they proved Twoie guilty or innocent. He felt he was betraying his friends' trust, but he was also confident they would find nothing incriminating on the phone.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Ok,” he conceded, surprising himself and Amethyst with how calm he sounded. “I’ll unlock his phone.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>His stomach knotted with guilt when she smiled at him, already regretting his decision. He took a deep breath to steel himself before heading to his room to retrieve the phone.</p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>“-my Diamond.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>A pair of faces he did not recognize peered up at him from his seat above them. He shot up like a bullet, his back straightening and shoulders squaring on their own. It was so ingrained in him that it might as well have been a reflex.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>He smiled, it was plastic and strained but the pair of gems didn’t seem to notice. Two pairs of identical grins appeared on their faces as they moved away, allowing for other gems to approach. This gem he recognized as a Sapphire, accompanied by her Ruby guard who stood at attention, eyeing the surrounding gems in suspicion.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>She was saying something, most likely a compliment or perhaps she was giving him advice about his future. Whatever the case, he didn’t care and merely nodded in agreement with a smile still plastered on his face. She soon left with her guard and her spot was once again filled by more gems eager to greet him.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Even after realizing that he was dreaming, he could not bring himself to act out of line, to break etiquette even if there were no consequences. He stole a glance at the other thrones that were situated above the ballroom. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>White, as was usual, was absent. She was always too busy to attend any sort of celebration. In her stead was her cracked Pearl, her single unblinking eye catching his gaze and causing him to shudder before looking away.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Yellow’s face was impassive as ever, but he had known her long enough to realize that she was bored. One of the few things they had in common was their distaste for events like this. Yellow detested third era balls simply because she believed them to be a waste of her time. The only reason she attended these gatherings was because it was her duty as a Diamond and Yellow always took her duties seriously. Her fingers twitched, probably longing for a screen she could use to file reports on.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Blue, for her part, was the most content out of the three Diamonds. A soft smile graced her features when their gazes met. He returned her smile easily, Blue was always the easiest Diamond to talk to. Her mood had greatly improved when he started taking his role as a Diamond seriously and she could not be more overjoyed to have her precious Pink back.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Something in the seas of faces and salutes caught his attention. A blur of black and red weaved in and out of the crowds, occasionally being swallowed up by the wave of gems before reappearing each time a little closer than before. It wasn’t long before the figure made it to the front of his throne and revealed himself to be Steven.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>He internally sighed, Steven had been getting better at invading his dreams and it was becoming difficult to block him out. He attempted to kick him out of his mind, blinking when he stubbornly remained. He didn’t dare glance back at the other Diamonds as if that action alone would prevent Steven from seeing them.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Twoie…” he greeted, his eyes dancing with some emotion he could not recognize. “Where are you?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>A wave of guilt washed over him at the concern in his voice. After he poofed Amethyst he kept running. For a while he had stayed in the forest, near where Little Homeworld would one day be built. He eventually forced himself to go back to Beach City, knowing that he could not hide from his problems forever.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>He was going to march straight back to the temple and didn’t plan on running into his dad who, to his relief, was not afraid of him in the slightest. They hung out all day and he found himself spilling the truth to his dad without any prompting from him. Most of the information about the Diamonds and the cluster flew over his head, but his dad did realize that he was taking on more responsibilities than he could handle.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The fog that had permeated his head finally parted as he recalled his conversation with Pearl. She had managed to find them on brooding hill and he finally told her the truth. Well, at least he tried to. He had been crying for most of his confession and he was certain that she wouldn’t be able to decipher most of what he said.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I’m on brooding hill, with Pearl.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“You need to come back.” he said, gaze briefly darting over to the Diamonds.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>He nodded, “I’m sorry for running away. You must have been worried.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Steven’s gaze dropped to the carpeted floor beneath his sandals. His hands curling into fists at his sides. A spark of worry flared in his chest at his behavior. Was Steven upset with him?</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“... I’m sorry too.” He muttered.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>His heart dropped like a stone to the pit of his stomach at his tone. There was something his younger counterpart wasn’t telling him.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“When you get back home… We need to talk.” was the last thing he said before taking off and disappearing into the crowd.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>He leapt off his throne and moved to chase after him, but the room rumbled causing him to lose his balance and trip. The faces of the gems in the crowd blurred and the objects around him lost their detail. He was waking up.</p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>Pearl stroked Twoie’s curls, humming absentmindedly as she waited for him to wake up. He had passed out from exhaustion after dropping a bombshell of information on her. She didn’t understand a lot of what he told her, most of the information was lost in between sobs, but she was able to piece some things together.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>From the way he casually referred to the Diamonds as simply ‘Blue’ and ‘Yellow’ she speculated that they had discovered the truth behind Rose Quartz. A scenario that made her shudder just thinking about their reactions. Her fear doubled at the realization that Twoie was forced to deal with the wrath of the Diamonds.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Her mind flashed back to when he first arrived, dressed as Pink Diamond. His cryptic behavior and strange mannerisms was starting to make sense.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Twoie’s face twitched as he twisted and turned, muttering in his sleep. He stilled before shooting up like a bullet. His eyes wide and confused as he adjusted to being awake.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“We have to go back. It’s Steven… something’s wrong.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>She ignored the tightening of her chest and chose not to question his information. She followed along silently as they made their way back to the beach house. She opened her mouth many times to utter apologies at how she had treated him, but her voice disappeared before she could say anything.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Is Garnet back?” Twoie asked her when they reached the beach.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Yes, Ruby and Sapphire fused shortly after you left.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>He nodded, satisfied, “Don’t tell her about… Pink.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“What?! She ha-”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Garnet doesn’t take it well. In my time she split over it and I was afraid I would never see Garnet again. I’m not going to order you to keep quiet about it if you don’t want to, but Homeworld is coming and we can’t afford to weaken the team.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>She was silent as she processed the new information, wanting to tell her teammates the truth but at the same time not wanting Garnet to split. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>She knew something was wrong the moment they walked into the room. The tension in the air was suffocating. Steven stole a quick glance at them when they first arrived, but now refused to look up from the floor. Amethyst’s eyes lit up in relief when they landed on her, hardening when she glanced at Twoie. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Garnet’s back was turned toward them making it difficult to tell how she was feeling, her shoulders trembled with suppressed emotion.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“What’s going on here?” she asked Amethyst, who was the most collected of everyone.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“We unlocked his phone-” she gestured to Twoie with her head. “-and we found something.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0013"><h2>13. The Truth</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Garnet struggles to accept the truth.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>The moment Twoie stepped into the living room he knew he was screwed. It was far too quiet like a peaceful calm before a deadly storm. The air was thick with an uneasy tension that threatened to swallow him whole. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven, usually a bundle of energy, sat motionless on the couch and refused to meet his gaze. His small hands were clutching the cushions next to him like a lifeline, his eyes fixated on a stain on the floor as if it were the most interesting thing in the world.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Garnet stood closer to the warp pad with her back facing him, hunched over and mumbling things he couldn't quite hear. Even though he could not see her face the small tremors that ran through her body told him that something was wrong. He chewed the inside of his cheek, the memory of her recent split still fresh in his mind. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Seated atop of the kitchen island was Amethyst whose fingers tapped against the countertop impatiently. She stopped when she noticed their presence and promptly jumped onto the floor sending Pearl a small smile and sending him a harsh glare in greeting. He quickly schooled his expression into one of indifference hoping he didn’t look as hurt as he felt.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Her quiet footsteps were loud, almost deafening compared to the silence that dominated the small room. She strode over to them with a confident, almost smug expression on her face.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl asked the same question he’d been wondering since their arrival, “What’s going on here?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>There was playfulness or humor in Amethyst’s voice when she answered, “We unlocked his phone and we found something.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Her words sent him reeling as he searched his empty pockets for a phone he knew wasn’t there. A ice cold bucket of dread pours over him causing a shudder to run down his spine. He steals a glance at Steven, his strange behavior finally making sense. The only possible way the gems could access his phone was if someone with the password unlocked it for them. He never told Steven his password, but he hadn’t changed it in years so it probably wasn’t that hard for him to figure it out.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>At Pearl’s question Garnet finally turned around. She was gripping his phone with so much force that he was surprised it didn’t split in two. Fear flashed across her usually stoic face before she hid it under a mask of anger and revulsion.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Through the reflection of her visor he could make out a picture of him with all three of the Diamonds. He was dressed in the elegant pink outfit that had once belonged to his mother. A dazzling smile adorned his face, arm extended out in front of him in a peace sign.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl tensed, inching forward to stand in front of him. A wave of nostalgia washed over him at her protective actions. He was reminded of when he was younger and he used to tag along on dangerous missions. Pearl always fretted over him constantly checking to make sure he was safe except this time she wasn’t defending him from a corrupted gem. This time it was Garnet who was stalking over toward them, gauntlets already summoned.</span>
</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re working for them. You’ve been in contact with Homeworld this whole time.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He wilted under her intense gaze, suddenly feeling very small, “I’m no-”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It all happened so fast. Pearl let out a shout of surprise as she was pushed aside. He was yanked off the ground, suspended in the air by the collar of his shirt. His teeth clicking together painfully as his head crashed against the wall.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Don’t lie to me!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Twoie!” came Steven’s desperate cry as he rushed over and engulfed Garnet’s leg in a tight hug, “Garnet, stop!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Garnet’s face softened momentarily as she looked down at Steven, “He’s dangerous. We can’t trust him.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“He’s not dangerous. He’s my friend!” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Steven…” Amethyst murmured, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. Steven angrily shrugged off her hand and hugged Garnet's leg tighter as if that alone would prevent her from harming Twoie. “Steven, this creep has pictures of himself with the Diamonds. He’s not a good guy.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“You said you just wanted to talk to him. You promised!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>His heart clenched painfully in his chest when he caught sight of the glare Amethyst was sending him. The warmth and playfulness that he had come to associate with her was gone, replaced by a look of contempt and disgust.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>His heart pounded against his chest as he squirmed under Garnet’s grasp. He stole a glance at Pearl who had been quiet throughout the interaction, her fearful eyes darting between himself and Garnet. Her hands twitched next to her side, an internal debate raging in her mind.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He made a subtle shaking motion with his head when he saw her mouth open, but she ignored him. Her hands curled into fist and her face steeled in determination.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Garnet,” Pearl said. “Put him down.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Other than a small quizzical frown gracing her features, Garnet did not visibly react to her words. She pressed his body even harder against the wall, “We need to poof and bubble him before he sends more information to the Diamonds.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m not working for the Diamonds! Look at the other pic-”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Enough of your lies!"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He flinched at her harsh tone whatever protests he had dying in his throat. The visor concealed her eyes, but he didn’t need them to be off to feel the glare she was giving him. It pierced through his body, chilling him to the bone. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Even on the rare occasions when Garnet was upset with him, the incident when he freed Lapis from the mirror came to mind, her anger had never been directed specifically at him. She always lectured him to do better and was more disappointed with his actions rather than at him, but he could detect no hint of disappointment in her now.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He was close enough that he could see her jaw clench which he knew was a sign that her patience was running thin. The living room was filled with a cacophony of noise as everyone attempted to shout over each other. He could make out Steven’s desperate pleas for peace that were overshadowed by Amethysts much louder shouts of confusion; She had apparently gotten into an argument with Pearl at some point.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Garnet made a noise that he could only describe as a growl before looking over to the bickering group, “That’s </span>
  <em>
    <span>enough</span>
  </em>
  <span>!” she roared, managing to stun everyone into silence. “We can discuss this after we contain </span>
  <em>
    <span>him</span>
  </em>
  <span>. He won’t be able to contact Homeworld when he’s in a bubble.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“No! Don’t hurt him!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Garnet! Unhand him! You’re making a huge mistake!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“What is with you Pearl?! Why are you defending him?!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Garnet grinded her teeth in frustration, “</span>
  <em>
    <span>Quiet</span>
  </em>
  <span>!” She sent him a victorious grin. “I’ve been waiting to do this since you first showed up.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She swung her massive gauntlet directly at his face with the intention of dissipating his form except his body wasn’t a projection of his gem. He was made of flesh and bone that would crumble under the force of her attack. His eyes shut on their own, body tensing in anticipation of the hit. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>To his surprise and immense relief he didn’t feel any pain. His body fell into an ungraceful heap on the floor. The sound of clashing weapons pierced the air and made him open his eyes. Pearl’s back was facing him as she took on a defensive stance, spear tightly gripped in her hand. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She had intercepted the attack.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Garnet’s eyebrows knitted together in confusion, scrutinizing Pearl like she was trying to solve a particularly difficult puzzle. Pearl held her ground, acting as a barrier between Garnet and himself. Steven darted past the two gems and tackled him into a hug. His eyes were shiny with unshed tears, guilt marring his face.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Twoie, I’m sorry! I just wanted to know the truth. I didn’t want anybody to get hurt!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He returned the embrace and flashed him a reassuring smile to show he wasn’t mad. Garnet’s gaze snapped onto them.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Steven, get away from him!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Garnet attempted to push past Pearl, but the pale gem blocked her path.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Pearl. Move.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl shook her head, “I won’t let you hurt Steven.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s not Steven.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m with Garnet on this one, Pearl.” Amethyst said. “This guy is working for the Diamonds!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The purple gem shoved his phone with the pictures of the Diamonds in her face. Pearl took the device from her and began swiping at the screen. Her face twisted into a grimace as she swiped past more pictures of the Diamonds. She finally stopped when she landed on a picture of him with all of the Crystal gems; they were smiling brightly at the camera. She twisted the phone around to show Amethyst and Garnet.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Twoie </span>
  <em>
    <span>is </span>
  </em>
  <span>Steven.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven was the only one who seemed to be taking the news well. The tension in his body disappeared at Pearls statement. His neck craned upward for a better view of the picture, eyes lighting up in relief and joy.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“See I told you!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Amethyst snatched the phone back, “What the…” she trailed off, eyeing the picture in disbelief.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Garnet stood frozen like a statue, expression unreadable. Just when Twoie was starting to think she had not seen the picture she dissipated her weapons and clutched at her head.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t understand…” she muttered, looking to Pearl for an explanation. “The Diamonds, his powers, my future vision…”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>At the mention of her future vision, Twoie’s eyebrow quirked upwards. Did Garnet see something in her future vision that made her suspect his motives?</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Garnet, there’s something you should know.” She put away her spear and addressed the whole room, “Something all of you should know.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Pearl</span>
  </em>
  <span>.” he warned.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She hesitated, eyes flitting over to Garnet, no doubt recall his words of warning. Garnet was unstable enough as it was. The revelation that Rose Quartz was actually Pink Diamond would cause her to come undone except this time they didn’t have the luxury of time on their side. He didn’t know if the message from Lapis had arrived during his absence, but he knew that they didn’t have much time before Jasper's arrival. They couldn’t afford to have a weakened team.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He caught her gaze silently begging her to keep silent on the matter. There should be no doubt about his identity as Steven and the other two gems seemed to be coming to grips with that. Garnet and Amethyst would have questions about his future involvement with the Diamonds, but he could come up with an explanation that didn’t involve revealing his mom's greatest kept secret.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>There is no sound in the house as his silent conversation with Pearl continues. He ignores the way Steven’s brows crease and how his eyes practically beg him for answers. He also ignores the confused and conflicted stares of the other gems. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl’s eyes are equally pleading, “They deserve to know the truth.” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“And they will, but not now.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“It will be different this time. If I can just explai-”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“They won’t listen and we don’t have much time before…”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Garnet had recovered from her shock and was now looking at Pearl with an expression of distaste at being left in the dark. “Pearl. Explain.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Amethyst and Steven seemed less shocked at the revelation that Pearl was hiding something or maybe they were just used to information being withheld from them. They looked on silently, eyes brimming with questions as they waited for Pearl to speak.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl flattered under all of sudden the attention, “I…”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Pearl, </span>
  <em>
    <span>please</span>
  </em>
  <span>. They won’t take it well.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl sent him a silent apology before speaking, “As you know Rose kept many things secret even from her closest friends. It was her duty as leader of the rebellion to know just what to keep hidden from everyone she was trying to protect. She believed that all life was precious and worth protecting, that all gems were equals and she despised the hierarchy upheld by Homeworld.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The confusion on Amethyst's face only increased at Pearl’s explanation, “What does Rose have to do with any of this?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I need you all to understand that Rose really did believe in the message of the Crystal Gems. I wanted to tell you the truth for so long, but…” Pearl trailed off, her hands moved to her throat as she remembered the final order Pink Diamond had given her.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven moved closer to Pearl, his voice tinged with concern, “Pearl?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She blinked as her eyes refocused on Steven. Twoie was tempted to interrupt her and prevent her from revealing the truth, but that would make him no better than his mom. He gave Pearl the freedom to speak the truth knowing that this could happen, but he couldn’t bring himself to take that freedom away.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl’s  next words were slow and hesitant. She kept glancing at her hands in fear they would latch themselves over her mouth. “Rose Quartz, your mother, was Pink Diamond.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The gravity of her revelation was lost on Steven. He knew very little about the Diamonds except that they were ‘bad guys’ and had some sort of leadership positions. He tilted his head to the side and opened his mouth to ask more questions, but was interrupted by Amethyst's surprised shout.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Whaaat</span>
  </em>
  <span>?!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Pink Diamond's final command to me was that no one could know. But Twoie knew and because of him I can finally tell you all everything!</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Even though he had been expecting it he still winced when Garnet split. Her body shimmered and shook for a moment before she lost her form and two smaller gems were thrown away from each other. Ruby rubbed at her head looking disoriented as she took in her surroundings. Her gaze locked onto the small blue gem who had a tear streak running down her face. Concern filled her eyes as she rushed over to comfort the distraught gem. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Sapphire-”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>A flurry of ice and snow chilled the room and covered the floor in a thin layer of ice. Twoie grimaced and looked away knowing nothing would calm the aristocratic gem now. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“She lied to us! She lied about everything! She held our hands, looked at us right in the eyes, and told us to never question who we are as Garnet. We never questioned ourselves, or her!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“We couldn't have known!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“No, you couldn't have known. You never know what's going on. That's what I'm for!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Sapphire…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But I never looked into her, I trusted her... I let her make fools of us all! </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Sapphire marched over to the warp pad.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Sapphire, wait!” Ruby rushed after her, “Please... We can just stay calm a-and talk about this, right? Let's just... talk.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Talk about what? How our relationship is based on a lie? What else is there to say…”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>A flash of light later and Sapphire was gone.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Ruby’s soft sobs filled the silence in the wake of Garnet’s abrupt unfusing and Sapphire subsequent outburst. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>5,300 Years Ago</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Bismuth grinned as she showed off the Breaking Point, “What do you think?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Rose tilted her head to the side, “What is it?” she questioned her eyes shining with curiosity.</span>
</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ll show you.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She brought them to a lower level in her forge and summoned multiple targets, each with a fake gemstone on their chest. Her stone opponents were no match against her greatest weapon. The sharp steel punched through their bodies like butter, leaving only a pile of rubble behind.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She beamed proudly as she admired her creation, “I call it the Breaking Point. One shot from this baby will shatter any Gem in the galaxy, in the blink of an eye.” she patted the weapon affectionately.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Bismuth.” Rose said in a gentle but firm voice. “You know as well as I do that shattering a Gem would destroy them forever.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Exactly! The Homeworld Gems won't be able to fight back when they're reduced to shards. Even a Diamond wouldn’t be able to stand up against this.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She handed the Breaking Point to Rose who hesitantly took it in her arms. Bismuth’s smile faltered a bit at her unenthusiastic reaction. Rose held the weapon far away from her body almost as if she was disgusted by it.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Bismuth, I can't use this.” she confessed.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“What?! Why not?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Bismuth please understand that shattering gems,” she gestured toward the breaking point.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That this is wrong. If we shatter gems we will be no different than Homeworld.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“We’re nothing like Homeworld! We'd be shattering them for the sake of our cause, to protect our allies, our friends; to free all Gems from Homeworld's tyranny!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Bismuth…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>She stared at Rose silently begging her to reconsider, to do the right thing. Rose hung her head low and avoided looking at her.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Fine.” she said, yanking the breaking point away from her. “If you won't take it, I’ll find someone who will.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Her mind conjured up an image of Garnet. Surely she would agree with her. Together they would be able to convince the Crystal Gems to fight using a Breaking Point. They would defeat Homeworld and finally earn their freedom.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Please don’t do this Bismuth.” Rose begged, stepping in front of the exit with her arms spread out.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Bismuth roughly pushed past Rose, “You’ll thank me for this later, Rose. When we’re vict-”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Bismuth's voice caught in her throat as something pierced her body. She stopped moving and slowly glanced down at her body in horror. A familiar pink sword was sticking out of her torso. She gently touched the tip of the sword in disbelief. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She slowly turned her head and was barely able to make out Rose standing closely behind her. Her hand tightly gripped the handle of the sword; her finest piece of work.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Rose’s pink hair cast a dark shadow over her face, “I'm sorry, Bismuth, but it's not right.” she whispered her voice full of sorrow.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Rose?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m sorry.” </span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0014"><h2>14. Aftermath</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Everyone scrambles to find Ruby and Sapphire.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>The house is engulfed in a thick and heavy silence that lingers in the air long after Sapphire has left. Seconds drag on into minutes and still no one moves. Twoie fends off the growing feeling of guilt that threatens to pull him under and suffocate him in a sea of regret. He steals a glance at the faces of the other occupants in the room, each expressing varying levels of shock and guilt.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl’s gaze is glued to the warp pad as if she were expecting Sapphire to return at any moment and apologize for her outburst. A wave of sympathy washes over him at the expression of disbelief she wears. Even with his knowledge of the future it was still difficult to watch Garnet, a gem who was renowned for the love that her components had for each other, unfuse so abruptly and argue.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Amethyst was always better at hiding her emotions and pretending to be unfazed by most situations, but Twoie could tell by the way her body tensed and her eyes widened slightly that she was just as surprised at the way events played out as Pearl.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It’s Steven who breaks the silence, his hurried footsteps causing the floorboards to creak under his weight as he rushes over to console the distraught gem. Another stab of guilt pierces his heart as Ruby’s weeping continues; it's a low and pitiful noise laced with sadness and grief. It quiets down slightly when Steven takes a seat on the floor next to Ruby and places a comforting hand on her shoulder, but the shudders that racked her body told him that Ruby was still crying.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie really wanted to go comfort Ruby, but feared his presence would only make things worse. Garnet was still struggling to accept the fact that he really was Steven and not some Homeworld spy before she unfused so he was unsure of where he stood with Ruby, who seemed to have the most hate for him before the truth was revealed.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven’s actions seemed to snap Amethyst out of her shock, “So, Rose was Pink Diamond? That’s… wow.” she chuckles, probably in an attempt to get rid of some of the tension in the room, “If you told me Rose invented cotton candy, I'd believe it.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I-is that a bad thing?” Steven asks, continuing to talk when no one answers, “Mom was a Diamond, b-but that doesn’t mean she was bad, right?” He turns to look at him, eyes pleading for reassurances that his mom wasn’t a bad person.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>A familiar buzzing in his cheeks told him that he was glowing pink again. He could practically feel the worried stares of his family as the pink glow engulfed more and more of his face. He shuts his eyes and takes a deep breath, willing his face to go back to normal before answering. It was no secret that he had… complicated feelings toward his mother and while he wouldn’t go as far to say that he hated her, he also no longer idolized her like he did as a child.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Staring into the eyes of his younger self fills him with a feeling of dread as he recalls how absolutely crushed he was at the revelation that his mom wasn’t the flawless being that the gems and his father always told him stories about. Disappointment and anger quickly followed when he realized that for the entirety of his childhood he had been attempting to live up to the memory of someone who didn’t even really exist. He didn’t want to lie to Steven about what kind of person their mom was, but he also did not want to reveal too much about her in fear of upsetting him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Mom wasn’t bad,” he begins, choosing his next words carefully. “But sometimes…”  </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>“You have so many worlds and I don't even have one! It's not fair! I. Want. One! I want my own army! I want my own planet! I deserve it! I'm just as important as you!”</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“She did things…”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>“You didn't even tell them! You bubbled me away and didn't ever tell your friends... My friends…”</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“That weren’t always good.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>“I never want to look back. So, for my last order to you as a Diamond, please, let's never speak of this again. No one can know.”</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“She wasn’t perfect.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>An emotion he can’t quite decipher flashes in Steven’s eyes before his gaze flicks back to a weeping Ruby. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“We need to go find Sapphire.” Steven says.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl finally breaks her silence at the mention of Sapphire and turns to face him, “Twoie, you were right. I should have listened to you, but I thought that if I explained….” she trails off. “I’m sorry.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He blinks, taken aback by her apology. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Sure, it had been Pearl who spilled the beans on his mom’s greatest secret, but she was only able to do so because he decided to tell her the truth. He could have kept his mouth shut or tried to come up with another lie, but he was just so tired of lying to his family. The suspicious stares, the hushed whispers behind his back, the cold and distant attitudes toward him were making him miserable. So when he saw an opportunity to gain an ally he foolishly took it.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The discovery that Rose Quartz was actually Pink Diamond wasn’t supposed to happen for a few years, but because of him all of the Crystal Gems and Steven knew the truth. He longed to change the timeline for the better so that Steven wouldn’t have to live with all the trauma that he went through, but he couldn’t do that if things changed too much. If he completely altered events then his future knowledge would become useless.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s not your fault.” he gently tells her. “Nothing you could have said would have changed Garnet’s reaction. We should focus on finding Sapphire.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl looks like she wants to argue but nods instead, “Do you have any idea of where she might have gone?” she asks.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, when this happened in my time Sapphire went to Rose’s fountain. You and Steven should check there first.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Aren’t you coming with us?” Steven asks, already moving to stand on the warp pad.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He shakes his head, “I’ll stay behind with Amethyst and keep an eye on Ruby.” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The last time this had happened it had taken a whole journey of self discovery for Ruby to decide that she wanted to be Garnet and even after that they hadn’t actually fused until their wedding. He actually really liked the idea of pretending to be a free cowboy in the west, but there was no time to do that. They needed to get ready for Jasper. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven’s steps are slow and careful as he approaches the now frozen over fountain. The ground is wet with ice and Pearl has to catch him a few times when he almost slips. He relaxes a bit when his eyes catch sight of Sapphire exactly where Twoie said she would be. She was seated on the edge of the fountain, face buried in her hands.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She must have heard them coming because she makes a swift gesture with her hand and suddenly a large slab of ice appears in between them. He jumps back in surprise. Sapphire wipes at a stray tear, parting her hair so she could gaze at the statue of his mom.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Her voice strains under the weight of her fury, “Everything we were running from, she was right there all along using us for her little war. Smiling at us with those knowing eyes. Making me believe in a better future that I couldn't see, because it wasn't real. And now here we are, our friends, shattered! And corrupted!” She barks out a laugh, it's hollow and bitter, “Of course she was a Diamond. What a long road she took, to torture us all like this…”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>At the mention of Diamond, Steven places his hand over his navel where his gemstone rested. It wasn’t a quartz gem like he had been led to believe his whole life. It was a Diamond — he was a Diamond. He wasn’t sure how he felt about that, but he did know that his mom wasn’t bad. She couldn’t be bad.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“M-mom wasn’t like that.” he says, voice coming out weaker than he would have liked. “She didn't want anyone to get hurt.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She finally turns to look at them. Her face, usually as expressive as a brick wall, is marred with anger and betrayal, “I don't know that! I clearly don't know anything!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He follows Pearl as she walks around the wall of ice and takes a seat on the fountain next to Sapphire, “You deserve to know everything.” she turns to look at him, “You both do. I was given to Pink Diamond a few thousand years before she was given the Earth. I was supposed to make her happy, I just... never could…”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie shifts his position on the couch for what must have been the hundredth time since Steven and Pearl left, but no matter how comfy he got the dull throbbing in his head refused to leave. It started shortly after Garnet unfused, slowly creeping up on him until the pain engulfed his entire head. He rubs at his temples in an effort to get the pain to go away, but it proves ineffective and only leaves him feeling frustrated.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He distracts himself by looking over to the floor near the warp pad where Ruby was still seated. Her crying had all but stopped except for the occasional sniffle. Amethyst had tried cheering her up but all her attempts were met with meek nods and half hearted smiles.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Ruby’s voice was quiet, “Can I have some paper and a pen?” she asks no one in particular.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Amethyst, who had been standing awkwardly in the living room up until that point, perks up at the question, “Sure, dude.” she says eagerly rushing up towards Steven’s room to retrieve the requested items. She comes down a few moments later, pen and paper in hand.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Ruby sniffles, the last of her tears disappearing, “Thank you.” she says briefly glancing up at Amethyst before turning her attention back to the sheet of paper. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He watches as she drags the pencil over the parchment, her writing coming out sloppy but legible. When she’s finished she folds the letter up and writes Sapphire’s name on it in big, blue letters. She leaves the letter on the floor, eyes flitting towards the warp pad before she stands up and heads toward the door of the house.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie, knowing what she was planning, rushes over to stand in front of the door, “We should all stay put until they come back.” he tells her.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Ruby blinks, her gaze focusing on him for the first time since Garnet unfused. She looks taken aback at his presence as if she’d forgotten he existed.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Her words come out shaky and unsure, “I… I have to go.” she says, refusing to meet his gaze for longer than a second.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Look, I know you’re upset about everything that happened with Sapphire, but Pearl and Steven will be back with her any second now.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, dude just relax.” Amethyst says. “I’m sure after you talk it out with Sapphire she’ll agree to be Garnet again.” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Ruby shakes her head, “That’s the thing… Sapphire was right. We really did stay Garnet because Rose told us we were the answer.” her face falls as fresh tears stream down her cheeks. “I-I need some time to think. I can’t stay here.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She tries maneuvering around him to get to the door, but he blocks her path. Her eyes dart between him and the door. Her shoulder slump in defeat and he relaxes thinking he’s won the argument. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She abruptly turns on her heel and barrels to the warp pad.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Ruby, wait!” He moves to chase after her, but is overcome with a sudden crushing pain that stops him in his tracks.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>His eyes water, it feels like someone is trying to crack his skull open. He tries talking steps toward the warp pad, but finds his legs won’t listen to him. A cold shudder runs down his spine causing his body to tremble. His mind vaguely registers the sound of a voice speaking to him before his legs buckle and his knees sink onto the floor. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He shuts his eyes and clutches at his head. The world around him begins to spin, his stomach churning in protest as the floor sways under him. A hand grips his shoulder. He opens his eyes when the voice grows louder and more desperate. Splotches of black decorate his vision growing in size until his world is completely engulfed in darkness.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The cogs in Steven’s brain are working overtime as he struggles to comprehend all the information that is being thrown at him. The gems always became uncomfortable around the topic of their origins. Their explanations were always vague and they quickly changed the subject. He found it odd but never pressed them on the subject and now he knew why.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Not all gems were good like he assumed, a lot of them wanted to invade the earth. His mind flashes back to the location where Amethyst was made, a kindergarten, Pearl had explained. A place where gems were made by sucking the life out of the earth. Twoie and Pearl prevented him from going to one, but he remembers how even around the edges of the kindergarten it was dull and devoid of any color. There was no sign of grass or flowers, even the soil was hard and dead.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>His horror grew the more Pearl revealed. His mom forced Pearl to keep the secret of her true identity for thousands of years and Pearl couldn’t do anything about it because she was considered </span>
  <em>
    <span>property</span>
  </em>
  <span>. She must have seen the disgusted look on his face because Pearl rushed to reassure him that their relationship wasn’t like that and that his mom valued Pearl as a close friend. His mom encouraged her to embrace freedom and always reminded her that she wasn’t </span>
  <em>
    <span>just</span>
  </em>
  <span> a Pearl.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>There was a zoo somewhere in space where they kept humans locked up. A gasp escapes him as he recalls Twoie’s strange dream, a memory of the zoo he realizes. He resists the urge to call Connie when he recalls her presence in the dream. The Connie of his time was safe at home, but for how long… </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Diamonds, he learns, are the ultimate authority governing Homeworld; the planet where gems are from. He thinks back to the large gem who resembled Amethyst from Twoie’s dream and how she saluted him. If Twoie was a Diamond then why was Connie in the zoo? Didn’t he have ultimate authority too?</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He’d never had any fear towards gem related things, acting somewhat recklessly at times because he was confident of his safety. He challenged gem monsters, like Centipeetle, head on because he was eager to impress the gems and hoped he would be invited on missions more frequently if he defeated them. The gems Pearl tells him about are different. They don’t care about preserving life on earth, they only care about colonizing it.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He can’t stop the creeping feeling of fear that invades his mind as Lapis’ words of warning ring in his ears.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>“There's a Gem looking for you, she even knew your name. I don't know how! I didn't tell her, I swear! She's on her way to Earth, and she's not alone.” </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He hadn’t been overly concerned when he received her message because he had been preoccupied with trying to find Twoie at the time, but now her words haunted him — chilling him to the bone.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>“Steven, Homeworld is not the way it used to be. Everything here is so advanced! I can't even understand it. There's no way anything on Earth can stand up to it. Please, don't put up a fight, It'll only lead to devastation!”</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Diamonds had tried to invade earth and his mom, Pink Diamond, was the one who led the colonization effort. He tries to imagine a completed earth colony, but stops when his stomach begins to churn; settling a bit as Pearl recounts the story of how his mom fell in love with the earth and rebelled against her fellow Diamonds. The earth was safe now, that was all that mattered.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Before Garnet, Rose was only fighting for Earth.” Pearl explains. “But Garnet changed everything. Rose wanted to fight for her, she wanted to fight for Gems! And maybe she was foolish, and maybe even... selfish! But she was-”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Following us.” Sapphire finishes for her, realization dawning on her face.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“What?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“This whole time, we thought we were following her, but she was following us. How could she not after you swept her off her feet?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“W-What?” Pearl sputters, cheeks flushing blue. “Me?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Are you kidding?” He says. “You took her on this whirlwind tour of Earth and then she wanted to live here with you forever!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“That's just how I felt when I came here with…” Sapphire gasps. “Ruby! Oh no! We have to get back right away!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The sound of metal clattering against the floor is what wakes Twoie up. He opens his bleary eyes, blinking a few times to clear his vision. He is lying down on the couch. A large, thick blanket is draped over his body and he can feel something cool resting on his forehead. He tries sitting up and lets out a small groan of discomfort as his head throbs in protest to the sudden movement.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re awake!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He whips his head around to the sound of the voice and whatever was on his forehead falls into his lap. Amethyst stood in the kitchen, her face flooding with relief at the sight of him. She hastily closes one of the many open cupboards around her before rushing over to him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I wasn’t sure what to do and then I remembered Pearl used to do that when you got sick.” she says, pointing at what he now recognized as a damp cloth in his lap. Amethyst must have been the one who put him on the couch then. “I was going to try and make you some soup, but I couldn’t figure out how.” she confesses, eyes darting to the messy kitchen behind her.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He blinks.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“... Thank you.” he says, slightly taken aback by her rapid change in mood. Just a few hours ago she had been glaring at him accusing him of being a Homeworld spy, but now she was looking at him with a furrowed brow and worried eyes. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Are you feeling ok?” she asks, her concerned tone grated on his nerves for some reason; he blamed the headache.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I…” he trails off as he contemplates her question. Was he ok? What happened to him? One second he was feeling fine and the next he passed out. He pulls the blanket down and looks himself over. He didn’t have any cuts or bruises and the stabbing pain in head is mostly gone, leaving him with a faint dizzy feeling. “Yeah, I think so.” he eventually says.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Amethyst nods, but he could tell she was still worried. A sudden wave of anger rushes over him at her concern. Since when did she care about his well being? He shakes his head, clearing his mind of those negative thoughts. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>His eyes dart around the room and his heart jolts when he notices Ruby is still missing.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Where’s Ruby?” he asks.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I don't know. I lost track of her after you passed out.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>His heart sinks, “We need to find her!” He shoots up into a standing position and nearly falls over as his head spins. Amethyst puts a steadying hand on his shoulder and guides him to the couch, making him take a seat.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Are you sure you’re ok?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m fine.” he grits out, trying to control his rising anger.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>They didn’t have time for this; they needed to find Ruby. He attempts to stand again, but Amethyst’s hand keeps him pinned to the couch.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I dunno man…” She says, voice skeptical. “Maybe you should stay here and rest. I’m worried about you.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He roughly shrugs off her hand, “Since when do </span>
  <em>
    <span>you </span>
  </em>
  <span>care?!” he snaps, surprising even himself.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The second the words leave his mouth he wishes he could take them back. Amethyst's face crumples and he can feel the heat growing in his cheeks, except this time it’s because of shame and not his powers.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Amethyst, I didn’t mean… !” he trails off, horrified by his words. “I-I’m sorry.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p><span>“No, you’re right.” Amethyst murmurs, guilt bleeding into her voice. “</span><em><span>I’m</span></em> <em><span>sorry</span></em><span>. For calling you a creep, for not trusting you more, for being a jerk, and for… everything”</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Like a bucket of water her words extinguish his anger, leaving him feeling tired, “It did hurt when you didn’t believe me.” he confessed. “but I get why you did it. I mean I showed up dressed like…” he trails off and chuckles at himself, “What was I thinking?” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Why</span>
  <em>
    <span> were </span>
  </em>
  <span>you dressed like that?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He shrugs, not wanting to talk about his experiences on Homeworld, “It’s what Pink Diamond used to wear.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She doesn’t seem satisfied with his answer, but must sense his unwillingness to talk about it because she doesn’t press him for more information.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Still, I should have believed you.” she says after a beat of silence.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s fine,” he reassures. “I know you were only trying to keep Steven safe.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“But </span>
  <em>
    <span>you’re</span>
  </em>
  <span> Steven, too!” She snaps and he is taken aback by the anger he sees in her eyes, anger he knows is directed at herself. “I should be keeping you safe, but instead I …”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“But you did take care of me.” he gestures towards the disaster that is the kitchen. “Or at least tried to.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, I guess…” she admits, but he knew that she hadn’t forgiven herself yet.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Thank you.” He says after a pause. “For apologizing.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She almost looks mad at him for a moment before she lets out a small chuckle, her features softening, “You shouldn’t have to thank someone for apologizing.” She wraps an arm around his shoulders and pulls him close, “but…  you’re welcome.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The first thing Steven takes note of as the light from the warp pad fades is the state of the kitchen, usually pristine and organized it was now a mess; pots and pans are strewn across the floor, the cupboards have all been flung open, and a random assortment of food laid forgotten on top of the stove. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He’s immediately on alert, scanning the house for signs of an intruder. Burglary wasn’t something common in Beach City, but he didn’t want to rule out that possibility. He relaxes at the sight of Amethyst and Twoie seated on the couch together, but his anxiety returns when he notices the absence of a certain red gem.  </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Beside him, Pearl gasps, “What happened here?” She asks, eyes darting towards the disaster in the kitchen before settling on the silent duo in the living room.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Did someone rob us?” he asks.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It’s Amethyst who answers, her cheeks darkening slightly, “I kinda overreacted after Tw-”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s not important right now.” Twoie interrupts her, attempting to stand. He teeters, wobbling from side to side, looking as if he were about to fall.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Amethyst steadies him, “Not so fast, my dude. You need to rest.” she says, pulling him back down on the couch.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The concern he feels for Twoie is overshadowed by his surprise at Amethysts sudden change in attitude. The usual suspicion she has in her eyes when talking to Twoie is gone, replaced by concern. Her face is pinched with worry and her hand rests atop Twoie’s shoulder, ready to pull him down in case he tries to stand again. His heart warms at the sight, glad that something good came out of this disaster.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie clutches at his head, face scrunching up in discomfort, “It’s fine, I just feel a bit dizzy. It’s nothing to worry about.” Twoie attempts to reassure her but even he’s not convinced.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Nothing to worry about?” Amethysts frowns. “Dude, you passed out!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Passed out!” Pearl shrieks. “What happ-”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s fine, I’m fine!” Twoie insists. “We need to focus on finding Ruby.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Where is Ruby?” he asks, but no one pays him any mind as they continue to argue about Twoie’s health.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He hears a small sob over the bickering. He turns to the noise and is greeted by the sight of a distraught Sapphire, who had been silent up to this point.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh no.” she breathes out, her small frame trembling as she grips a letter tightly in her hand.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Concern wells up inside of him and before he knows it, he’s standing next to her.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Sapphire, What’s wrong?” he asks.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s Ruby.” she says her voice choked up with emotion.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Her words manage to catch the attention of everybody else. The room quiets down as they turn to look at Sapphire.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Sapphire’s voice trembles as she reads the contents of the letter:</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>‘Sapphire, you were right. I need some time to think, so I am running away. Ruby’</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>A tear streaks across her face, “Oh Ruby, I’m so sorry. You left before I can take back all the horrible things I said to you.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl takes the letter from Sapphire and reads it again, her eyes widening in horror as the words finally sink in.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Her gaze snaps onto Twoie and Amethyst, “Did either of you see where she went?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“She took the warp pad.” Amethyst says and then in a much more frustrated tone, “She could be anywhere by now.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven, noticing the growing tension in the room, rushes to reassure everyone. “Everything’s going to be fine. We just need to figure out where Ruby ran off to.” He turns to Twoie, “Don’t you know where Ruby went? You knew where Sapphire was going to go.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie grimaces at the question, “No, when this happened in my time Ruby went to Brooding Hill with dad, but she took the warp pad, so….” he trails off.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He pushes down his growing anxiety and looks to Sapphire for guidance, “Do you see her coming back in your future vision, Sapphire?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>That was decidedly the wrong thing to ask because not a second later Sapphire bursts into hysterics, launching herself at the nearest person which happens to be Pearl. Pearl looks startled for a moment but quickly recovers and moves to comfort the gem. Sapphire tries talking in between her sobs, but the only words he can make out are “future vision” and “not working” which are enough for him to understand what the problem is.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie pales at her words, “What do you mean your future vision isn’t working?!” he gnaws at his bottom lip. “Is that even possible?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Sapphire attempts to answer, but her words are incomprehensible. Instead it's Pearl who speaks up, “Sapphire’s future vision hasn’t been working for a while.” she explains while patting the aristocratic gem on the back. “Garnet thought that… Well, she said that her future vision stopped working around the same time that you first arrived.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie’s mouth falls agape and he struggles to find his voice, “What? I caused this? But I… How?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Maybe it ‘cause you’re from the future.” he suggests. “Connie says that time travel can have all kinds of weird effects.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl detangles herself from Sapphire, who has somewhat calmed down, “Whatever the case is we should probably focus on finding Ruby first. Twoie and I will remain here.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“What? I can’t just stay here!” Twoie shouts in protest. “I should be out there looking for Ruby.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl shakes her head in disagreement, “I don’t want you going out while you're injured.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m not inju-”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“And we need to keep an eye on the warp pad in case Ruby decides to come back.” Pearl says, her eyes pleading for him to listen.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie tries to stand up one final time, he sways and almost loses his balance. Amethyst steadies him once more. He sighs in defeat, “Fine.”</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0015"><h2>15. Found</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Steven and Amethyst manage to find Ruby.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Steven scanned the vast arena, his eyes constantly on the lookout for any glint of red. Luckily, the Sky Arena was fairly small compared to the other locations he and Amethyst had scoured previously.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Ruby!” The purple gem called from overhead. She had shape shifted into a bird and was now circling the area in search of Ruby. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He searched the audience stands, checked behind the pillars that littered the arena, and had even used his floating abilities to get an aerial view, but — just like the other locations they had searched, they found nothing.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Amethyst swooped down from the sky and perched herself on his shoulder. “She’s not here either.” she said, frustration leaking into her tone. “Ugh, I thought for sure she’d be here.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m sure we’ll find her soon.” He said encouragingly, “We just have to keep looking. Let’s check the Sky Spire next.” He smiled at Amethyst, trying to get her spirits up, but even he feels the hopelessness of the situation weighing down on him. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He just hoped Sapphire was having more luck in her search than they were.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The kettle let out a high-pitched whistle, alerting Pearl that the tea was done. She finished putting the last of the pots that Amethyst had carelessly left on the floor away before moving to turn the stove off. She stole a glance at Twoie as she busied herself with serving the tea. He was seated on the couch, blanket draped over his shoulders, a glum look on his face; It was clear he was still upset he wasn’t allowed to go search for Ruby.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She hands him the tea-filled cup before taking a seat next to him. “Are you feeling any better?” she asked, trying not to let her worry show.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He didn't seem to want to answer, choosing to take small sips of his tea instead. His fingers tapped against the porcelain cup, a manifestation of his inner restlessness. “I already told you I’m fine.” He said after a beat of silence.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She couldn’t stop the frown from forming on her face or the concern from leaking into her voice. “You passed out and can’t stand on your own.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I was just a little dizzy earlier, but I’m fine now.” As if to prove his point he stood up, he wobbled and she rushed to steady him. He waved her off and, thankfully, managed to stay upright without any assistance. “See? I’m fine.” He said, flashing her a reassuring smile.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She nodded but remained unconvinced, “If you say so…” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He sat back down, “I think I was just stressed out.” He takes another sip of his tea. “I just hope we can find Ruby in time…” his eyes darken and glaze over. He is staring into his cup, but she recognizes the far away look in his eyes for what it is— a memory of an event that hasn’t happened yet.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She hesitates, a part of her doesn’t want to know about the future, of the events leading up to Steven taking on the role of Pink Diamond. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“How much time do we have before…” she trails off, leaving her question hanging in the air.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He blinks, the fog in his eyes lifting. “I’m not sure.” He places his cup on the coffee table before turning to face her. “Have you received the message from Lapis yet?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes, Greg was able to successfully unscramble the message from the wailing stone.” she replied, not bothering to ask how he knew of the message in the first place.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He paled at her words, eyes darting toward the window as if he were expecting Peridot to break in and attack. “We need to find Ruby, </span>
  <em>
    <span>today</span>
  </em>
  <span>.” His voice had a finality to it, leaving no room for argument. “We also need to send Steven away— far away.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She nodded in agreement. The thought of Steven facing off against Homeworld gems didn’t sit well with her. She wanted to send Twoie away as well, but knew he wouldn’t listen. His face was hardened over by a look of determination that was eerily similar to the one Rose would wear when she had made a decision. Past experiences taught her she couldn’t change Rose’s mind and she was certain it was the same with Twoie.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I have a plan to stop Peridot when she arrives.” She began. “I haven’t tested it out yet, but I created a robot disruptor and it should produce a localized energy bla-”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie interrupted her, “It won’t work.” he said. “It just ends up causing a huge power outage.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“If I just make a few minor adjustments then I’m sure I can get it to function properly.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He shook his head. “It won’t matter, Peridot won’t be bringing any of her flask robonoids. She’ll be arriving in a hand ship with Jasper.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She tried not to let her fear show at the mention of a Jasper, a Homeworld soldier gem who was much stronger than a lowly Pearl like herself.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Then we’ll stop the ship before it can even reach the earth. If we use the Quartazine Trio an-”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“That won’t work either.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She deflated at his words, their situation only seemed to grow more dire. She wrung her hands together as she racked her mind for ideas to stop Homeworld. There had to be something she could do, something she could build, a strategy she could come up with maybe. She couldn’t just sit around and wait for Peridot to show up.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“How did we manage to defeat Peridot in your time?” she asked, after failing to think of anything.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“We didn’t.” He said. “We were taken prisoner and we only managed to escape because of Garnet, but if she’s not here…”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Oh. That certainly explained why he had been so adamant about hiding the truth about Rose from Garnet, and like a fool she had told her anyway. Her eyes darted over to the warp pad.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Don’t worry.” Twoie said with much more confidence than she was feeling. “We’ll find Ruby in time.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“And if we don’t?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He stilled and she watched as an internal struggle played out in his head before a determined look crossed his features. “Then I know someone else who can help us.” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven stepped onto the warp pad. The Sky Spire, much like the Sky Arena, proved to be a disappointment. There was no sign of Ruby and they were starting to run out of places to search.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>One flash of light later, he and Amethyst had arrived at their next location. The smell of fire mixed with the sweet aroma of the Strawberry Battlefields. Smoke particles danced in the breeze and following them led Steven to a patch of scorched grass.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah that’s definitely Ruby.” Amethyst said beside him. “Let’s hurry up and find her so we can go home already.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He nodded and followed the trail of singed grass and smoke. A while into their search he began to notice small patches of ice that ran adjacent to Ruby’s trail.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span> “Do you think that’s Sapphire’s ice?” he asked after pointing it out to Amethyst.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I hope so.” She said. “Maybe by the time we find them they’ll have formed Garnet again.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven moved faster at her words. The sooner they found Garnet, the sooner things would go back to normal. He could go back to having adventures with the gems and Twoie and not have to think about the Diamonds anymore. His eyes darted to where his gem rested, Pearl’s earlier words about his mom and gemkind still ringing in his ears.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Did you know?” he asked suddenly.</span>
  <span>
    <br/>
    <br/>
  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Know about what? Rose being Pink Diamond?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“No. I mean, did you know that-” he whispered the next words like they were some sort of secret. “-gems were aliens.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She gave him a blank look. “Steven, I’m a gem.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I know </span>
  <em>
    <span>that</span>
  </em>
  <span>, but Pearl told me about how the Diamonds wanted to invade earth for our resources. I guess, I just never thought gems could be bad.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Her pace slowed, a wistful look crossing her features. “Yeah, Rose explained it to me once, said the Crystal Gems were originally formed to stop the Diamonds and all that good junk.” she shrugged. “I never really thought about it much. I mean, all that stuff happened thousands of years before I was even around.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, but aren’t you worried about what Lapis said in her message.” he gnawed on his bottom lip, the anxiety in his voice rising. “What if the Diamonds come back for the earth?” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Steven, I-”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Sharp words and strained voices made both of them stop in their tracks. Steven followed the trail with his eyes, stopping when they landed on Ruby and Sapphire who were discussing something near a patch of particularly large strawberries.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Ruby! Sapphire!” He called out, rushing over to them.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>They stilled at the sound of his voice, their words becoming harsh whispers. What were they talking about? And why hadn’t they formed Garnet yet?</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie took tentative steps, pausing every few seconds as he climbed the stairs that led to Steven’s room. He was mostly back to normal except for the occasional dizzy spell and he hoped that too would disappear in time. After a bit of convincing, Pearl allowed him to go pack some of Steven’s belongings for his eventual departure. He folded some of the boy's clothes before stuffing them into his cheeseburger backpack along with several other of his most precious belongings.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>As he packed, he would catch his eyes darting toward the window every few seconds, looking for a threat that wasn’t there. Ever since Pearl informed him that they had already received the message from Lapis he had been on edge. He busied himself by organizing Steven’s room, mindlessly fixing his bed and sorting his toys, but nothing helped quell the feeling of anxiety that was quickly taking hold.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He double and triple checked that Steven would have everything he needed before placing the comically overstuffed backpack near the door for easy access. Having nothing else to do, he moved to sit on the couch and watched as Pearl distracted herself by making dinner, a dinner he was certain wouldn’t be eaten. He glanced out the window again.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The sky was a brilliant shade of blue that stretched on for miles with no clouds in sight. The warm rays of the sun illuminated the golden shores of the beach just outside his house. It was a beautiful day, the weather was perfect— a stark contrast to future events that wouldn’t be as pleasant.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>A pillar of light engulfed the house and pulled his attention to the warp pad. His face lit up in a smile at the sight of Steven and Amethyst, but quickly fell at the lack of Garnet. He rushed over to them, ignoring Pearl’s worried cries about his health and pushing past the wave of dizziness at his sudden movement.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Where’s Garnet?” he asked, failing to keep the rising panic out of his voice. He had to resist the urge to look out the window.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven and Amethyst shared a look before stepping aside to reveal two smaller gems: Ruby and Sapphire.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, the good news is that we found Ruby.” Steven said, a strained smile on his face. “But the bad news is…”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“We won’t be seeing Garnet for a while.” Amethyst finished.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>What?!</span>
  </em>
  <span>” Shrieked Pearl, nearly knocking over dinner as she dashed over to the warp pad. “But you found Ruby! Did something happen? Did one of your gems crack? Di-”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Relax, P.” Amethyst interrupted her worried line of questioning. “We’re all fine, it’s just…” she trailed off as an awkward silence engulfed the room.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He glanced at the two small gems. Ruby’s haggard face and slumped shoulders crushed his hope that Garnet would return any time soon. Sapphire stood, hands clasped together, stone-faced and impassive as ever. Something had happened between the two that much he was certain of and judging by the tension in the group he guessed it wasn’t anything good.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie rubbed at his temples as he fended off another bout of dizziness, “You don’t want to be Garnet anymore.” he mumbled in realization.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl’s pleading eyes darted between Sapphire and Ruby. “That… t-that can’t be true.” she said</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Ruby flinched when their eyes met and looked away. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It was Sapphire who spoke up, “In light of recent events, Ruby and I have decided to take a break from being Garnet.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Like a physical blow, her words knocked the air out of his lungs. He could tell by the defeated expressions that Steven and Amethyst wore that they already knew about Ruby and Sapphire’s decision. Pearl’s face was frozen in an expression of stunned surprise, it was honestly a miracle that she hadn’t poofed immediately after Sapphire’s revelation.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“B-but everything is going to be fine, right?” Steven asked, his timid voice cutting through the tension. “Garnet’s still not back, but at least we’re all together again.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It was silent, no one daring to crush the hopeful expression of Steven’s face. Pearl had mentally checked out and probably would have fallen over if she weren’t leaning on the kitchen island for support. Ruby and Sapphire awkwardly stood next to each other, refusing to make eye contact. Amethyst, at least, gave Steven a half hearted smile and a shrug. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Without Garnet, the Crystal Gems were left directionless in the midst of a crisis. What they needed now was a leader and a morale boost. He took a calming breath to steady his nerves before plastering on a large grin.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span> “Good job! You guys did it!” he exclaimed with just the right amount of false cheer sprinkled in to make it believable. His smile became more genuine as the tension in Steven’s shoulders slowly lifted.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Amethyst’s face scrunched up in confusion. “What?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“You found Ruby!” he said as he pulled Amethyst and Steven into a hug.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, bu-”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“We’re all together again! Isn’t that awesome?” he said as he used his strength to twirl both of them around.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven giggled in his hold. “Twoie, you’re making me dizzy.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He gently put them back on the floor. “Sorry, bud.” he said while ruffling Steven’s hair. “You know what would be a great way to celebrate?” he asked, not waiting for anyone to respond. “Donuts!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven’s eyes lit up at the mention of his favorite pastries, the remaining worry in his face leaving and giving way to excitement. “Oh! Last time I was there Sadie said that she was working on making new flavors!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Sounds great!” he said. “Pearl was making dinner, but I’m sure she won’t mind if we eat a few celebratory snacks. Isn’t that right Pearl?” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The pale gem blinked, her vision snapping back into focus. “Huh?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Twoie says we can go buy donuts.” Steven explained. “Which one’s your favorite?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Donuts?” she mumbled. “But what about Garne-”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Get her strawberry donuts.”  he interrupted before she could change the subject. “Pearl loves strawberry.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Strawberry’s my favorite too!” Steven announced happily. His face turned pensive. “Wait, can I get two donuts?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Sure!” he handed him a random assortment of crumpled bills and loose change from his pocket. “Make sure to bring back some for everybody.” he said, even though he knew Amethyst was the only gem who ate.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven waved goodbye to everyone, tugging a bewildered Amethyst along with him and excitedly chatting about his favorite types of Donuts. Twoie kept his grin up until Steven was completely out of sight.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He paused as he looked at the remaining members of the room. Pearl, while more alert, was still reeling from the latest development. Ruby had at some point moved away from Sapphire and was now seated on the couch. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He opened his mouth to discuss plans so they would be ready for when Jasper arrived but before he could say anything Sapphire spoke up, “If you need me I’ll be in my room.” she said, before disappearing into the temple.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He choked back a scream of frustration. This was going horribly. With no other options left he marched outside in search of Lion.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And that’s why strawberry donuts are the best.” Steven said as he happily munched on a donut, enjoying the cool breeze of the afternoon.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Beside him Amethyst nodded as she stuffed several donuts in her face. She said something in response, but it was muffled by the food in her mouth. He chuckled at her antics, relieved that things were starting to go back to normal.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Just then a loud cracking noise pierced the air. He whipped around, eyes widening as he assessed the destruction around him. The windows of all the shops on the boardwalk were shattered, the glass dangerously littered on the ground.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Are you seeing what I’m seeing?” Amethyst said, her gaze turned upward.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He almost didn’t want to look, but he forced himself to do so anyways. A cold feeling of dread settled in his stomach at the sight of a large green ship in the sky. It was growing larger in size as it approached the beach. He squinted to get a better view of the object.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Is that… a hand?” he said. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The more he looked at it the more certain he was that it was a hand. He’d always assumed that an alien ship would be disk shaped like in those movies he used to watch with his dad. A bright green, hand-shaped ship was not something he was expecting.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“That can’t be good.” Amethyst muttered. “C’mon, Ste-man let’s head back with the others.” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Every time Bismuth had reformed in the past it was always instant. A flash of light and she was herself again. She never had to think about it, but this time it was different. There was something preventing her from reforming, a barrier that stood in her way. If she had a body she would have frowned as she recalled Rose’s sword piercing her. Even now, in the safety of her gem she struggled to accept that the leader of the Crystal Gem Rebellion, Rose Quartz— her trusted friend had attacked her. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The pressure that was keeping her prisoner suddenly vanished. She wasted no time and immediately got to work in reforming herself. She flailed in the air as her body took form, taking on a defensive stance the second her feet made contact with solid ground.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She expected to be in her forge, or maybe one of the numerous bases they had littered throughout the planet. What she hadn’t been expecting was to reform on top of a hill overlooking a vast and unnaturally pink field. She also thought that Rose would be the first to greet her, hopefully to apologize. She certainly hadn’t been expecting to be greeted by a human with a nervous grin.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Her gaze darted everywhere as she searched for something, anything that was familiar, but she was only met with more vast and open pink fields. Her gaze settled back onto the human who, upon closer inspection, appeared to have a pink sphere encircling his head.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Um… Hey.” he greeted, a touch of uncertainty in his voice.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Bismuth had a million questions swarming through her head about Rose, about the rebellion, about her friends, but knew that the human standing in front of her probably didn’t know anything about that. For the most part, Humans tended to avoid being around the gems, some were even frightened by them.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Where are we?” she asked, knowing that the human would at least know that. She just hoped he wouldn’t run away and leave her confused and lost.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s a little hard to explain, but we’re in Lion’s mane.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Lion’s mane?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s not important right now. I… we could really use your help. I know you’re probably really confused right now, but we don’t have much time. Homeworld will be here any minute now.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She was immediately on alert at the mention of Homeworld, “How do you know about Homeworld? What’s going on? Where is Rose?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He flinched at the mention of Rose, his cheeks flushing a bright pink before he shook his head and returning to normal. “She’s gone, really gone.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Gone? What do you mean gone?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ll explain later. Let’s focus on regrouping with the others.” He extended a hand out and offered it to her.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She stole one last glance at the endless fields that surrounded them, fields that she would no doubt get lost in without the help of a guide. With no better options she placed her hand in his and hoped for the best. The Human led her down hill, stopping just at the edge of the tall and vibrant fields.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“This might be a little weird.” he stepped onto the fields and phased right through it. Bismuth stood in shock as the lower half of his body completely disappeared into the ocean of pink. “Trust me.” he said as his torso and head receded into the field, leaving only his outstretched arm visible. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She glanced at their hands which were still clasped together and steeled her nerves before taking a step forward.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0016"><h2>16. The Return</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The Crystal Gems face off against Homeworld.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Everything was spiraling out of control. It wasn’t supposed to be like this. Twoie was supposed to make the past better, instead he had only managed to make things worse. Now because of him Garnet had split up, maybe permanently, and they still had Jasper to deal with. He chewed the inside of his cheek to prevent himself from screaming. Getting upset now wouldn’t help the situation.</p><p> </p><p>He jumped over the wooden railing and used his powers to safely land on the sand under the beach house where a sleeping Lion rested. He couldn’t suppress the pang of envy at the sight of the snoring pink cat. He was pretty sure Lion never had to deal with accidentally messing up the timeline. All Lion worried about were snacks and naps, both of which were things that Twoie had very little of recently. As if hearing his thoughts, Lion opened his eyes and peered up at him as if to say ‘what do you want?’</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Hey, bud.” he greeted, stroking his impossibly soft mane. Lion leaned into his touch, purring in approval. “I need to get something, <em> someone </em> out of your mane.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Like always, Lion seemed to understand what he was saying. He lowered his head, making it easier for him to enter the weird dimension that resided inside of his fur. He summoned a bubble around his head so he wouldn’t suffocate and entered Lion’s mane.</p><p>
  
</p><p>He took some time to admire his surroundings, something that he rarely got to do since this dimension lacked any breathable air. Everything was as pink and serene as he remembered it being. The only difference being the lack of a second hill that connected to Lars' head.</p><p>
  
</p><p>The bubble containing Bismuth was easy to spot. It was cradled by the branches of the tree at the top of the hill. It was too early for Bismuth to come out, but they were in a tight spot and they needed all the help they could get. He wanted to bring Bismuth back sooner, but he had been so busy with figuring out how to stop the cluster and with trying to convince the gems that he wasn’t some Homeworld spy that it had slipped his mind. </p><p>
  
</p><p>He reached a tentative hand out toward the pink sphere and stopped short of touching it. A thought struck him— if he brought Bismuth back now then Steven would have to deal with her and the breaking point. </p><p>
  
</p><p>He pulled his hand back. </p><p>
  
</p><p>Twoie loved Bismuth, but he couldn’t deny that she was the cause of some of his nightmares. He had been so confused and scared in her forge as she accused him of being Rose Quartz. He didn’t want to fight her. He begged and pleaded, tried to convince her that he wasn’t his mom, but she didn’t believe him. </p><p>
  
</p><p>She tried to shatter him and he was forced to defend himself. He had no choice but to poof her, if he didn’t then she would have… killed him. He didn’t want Steven to have to deal with that, but he had no other options. Bismuth was strong and she would fight for the Crystal Gems without question. </p><p>
  
</p><p>He reached his hand out again.</p><p>
  
</p><p>His fingers brushed the smooth surface of the bubble and he was suddenly glad he decided to bubble his head because an unexpected wave of vertigo hit him with so much force that he fell to his knees, unable to move. He clutched at the ground like a lifeline, his fingers digging into the soft dirt underneath him. A buzzing, static filled his head, dulling all his senses. Not this again, not now. What was happening to him?</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em> Hot. </em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em> Hot. </em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em> Hot! </em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>Everything burned. It was as if someone had replaced all his blood with boiling lava. Sweat streamed down his face as his body desperately attempted to cool itself. His chest heaved, his breaths coming out in short sporadic puffs. </p><p>
  
</p><p>Then, like a bad dream it was suddenly over. He remained still for a few moments and rose from the ground slowly once he was sure everything was okay.</p><p>
  
</p><p>He snatched the bubble from its spot on the tree before anything else happened. He took a moment to steel his nerves before popping the bubble and freeing Bismuth. Her gem stopped its dissent and hovered in the air. It shone brightly, taking on a familiar form.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Bismuth was back.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Her eyes were wide as she took in her surroundings and Twoie suddenly realized how strange his situation was. He was the future half-human, half-gem son of Rose Quartz. How do you even explain something like that to an ancient gem warrior?</p><p>
  
</p><p>Bismuth finally noticed him and stared, a dazed look in her eyes.</p><p>
  
</p><p>He could have told her a million things that were more important in that moment, but in the end he settled on, “Um… Hey.”</p><hr/><p>“Mayor Dewey, the whole town's in danger.” Steven said in between haggard breaths “We have to evacuate the city.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Mayor Dewey said something in response about slogans, but Steven wasn’t really paying attention. He hung up as soon as he could and rushed to keep pace with Amethyst as she zoomed past the boardwalk and headed toward the beach house.</p><p>
  
</p><p>His foot must have caught on something because he was suddenly hurtling toward the ground and would have landed on his face if it weren’t for a pair of arms holding him steady.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Are you alright, Stchu-ball?” the concerned voice of his father said, surprising him.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Dad? What are you doing here?”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“I came as soon as I saw that.” he said pointing toward the hand ship that loomed over the town.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Oh right. Something that weird was usually related to the gems. He was glad that his dad had found him, everything had been so chaotic lately that he hadn’t had time to hang out with him. He just wished it was under better circumstances, but he guessed that an alien invasion was as good a time as any to spend time with his dad.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Steven!” a distant voice called out to him.</p><p>
  
</p><p>He and his dad both turned to the sound of the voice and saw Amethyst barreling toward them.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“There you are!” she said. “C’mon, dude! We have to hurry!”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Hurry?” said his dad. “Is everything alright?” he asked and then more frantically, “Is Twoie okay?”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Ugh! We don’t have time for this!” Amethyst said before scooping both him and his dad up in her arms and dashing toward the beach house.</p><hr/><p>He could do this. It was fine, totally fine. The gems would probably be so happy to see Bismuth that they’ll forget to ask where he found her and why he hadn’t brought her back sooner. Everything, for once, was going to work out.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Twoie?” Bismuth said next to him.</p><p>
  
</p><p>He made a shushing motion with his hands and looked around to make sure no one had heard her. She raised an eyebrow at his strange behavior, but did lower her voice.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Why are we just standing outside of a wooden base?” she asked. “I thought you said we didn’t have much time.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>He flushed, recalling his earlier urgent words. She was right, they didn’t have any time to waste standing around. He needed to act now, every second was a precious resource.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“You’re right.” he said. “Just wait there-” he pointed to a spot on the staircase that was out of the view of the window. “-and when I call your name just walk into the house.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>If she thought his orders were weird, which they were, she didn't show it and merely nodded in agreement before standing exactly where he had shown her.</p><p>
  
</p><p>He took a deep breath. “I got this.” he whispered to himself before walking up the stairs and into the house.</p><p>
  
</p><p>The living room was just as it was when he left, a sulking Ruby was brooding on the couch, Sapphire was nowhere to be seen, and Pearl was staring at the empty air in front of her. He debated whether he should call Sapphire out, but figured she would ignore him. She probably wasn’t in the best of moods right now and trying to coax her out of her room would take too long.</p><p>
  
</p><p>He cleared his throat in order to get everyone’s attention. It didn’t work. Ruby and Pearl remained motionless in their respective spots. He sighed. Why did everything have to be so hard?</p><p>
  
</p><p>“I’m back.” he said, even though he was pretty sure neither of them noticed he had left in the first place.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Ruby spared him a glance before going back to staring at the wall. Pearl blinked and turned to look at him.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Oh. Twoie.” she said, a touch of confusion in her voice.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Well, this was depressing. The majority of the Crystal Gems either refused to talk to one another or they were mentally checked out. Hopefully, the return of Bismuth would breathe some life back into their team which was currently in shambles.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“I have some good news!” he said with as much enthusiasm as he could muster, hoping that some of it would rub off on them. Ruby grunted in reply and Pearl just blinked at him. “Aren’t you going to ask me what it is?” he said.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“What’s the good news?’ Pearl asked him after a beat of silence.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“I have someone I want to introduce you to. Well, I guess reintroduce you to since you guys already know her.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>He grinned when Ruby looked up, she actually seemed to be listening to him now. The haze in Pearl’s eyes also lifted and was replaced by curiosity.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Already know her?” Pearl repeated, her face scrunching up in thought.</p><p>
  
</p><p>He nodded, “She’s brave, strong, and means serious <em> Bismuth </em>.” he said, projecting his voice at the word Bismuth.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Ruby’s eyes widened as she perked up, her full attention was now on him. Pearl was in a similar state of disbelief, her mouth agape in shock.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“No. Way.” Ruby said.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Twoie, you don’t really mean…” Pearl trailed off. </p><p>
  
</p><p>Before he could answer the door behind him creaked open and judging by Pearl and Ruby’s faces, Bismuth had walked in.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Did I do it right?” She asked him as she sauntered into the house, stopping when she was in the center of the living room. She didn’t seem to notice the two stunned gems yet as her eyes scanned the house with curiosity, no doubt wondering why they were in such a flimsy wooden base.</p><p>
  
</p><p>He didn’t respond, content to wait and see how long it took for either Bismuth to notice the other gems or for Pearl and Ruby to react to her presence. The former happened first, when Bismuth was examining the kitchen her eyes landed on Pearl who had gone stiff as a statue.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Pearl?” she said, moving closer to the pale gem.</p><p>
  
</p><p>It was a fascinating thing to watch, the way Pearl’s facial expressions changed so rapidly from shock, to disbelief, to acceptance, and finally to pure unbridled joy. </p><p>
  
</p><p>“Bismuth!” she exclaimed, her voice cracking with emotion. “You're back!”</p><p>
  
</p><p>She leapt out of her chair and practically threw herself at Bismuth who let out a boisterous laugh as she swung her around in her arms.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Woah! The Pearl I know never jumps into my arms! Hey, did somebody lose a Pearl?” She asked, making a big show of looking around the room, which succeeded in making Pearl laugh. “Who do you belong to?”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Pearl stifled her laughter. “Nobody!” she proclaimed proudly, the fire in her eyes back.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Ruby finally snapped out of her shock and, like Pearl, flung herself at Bismuth.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Ruby?” Bismuth said.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“You’re here!” Ruby said. “You’re really here!”</p><p>
  
</p><p>She latched onto Bismuth’s arm and nuzzled their heads together in an excited embrace. Bismuth patted her back and laughed as she looked down at herself. Twoie couldn’t help but laugh along with her, they made for a ridiculous sight with how they were both clinging onto her as if she were a teddy bear and not a gem warrior.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Twoie resisted the urge to join in on the hug. He missed Bismuth, but she didn’t even know him. Instead he stood and watched as they laughed and chatted amongst themselves, often talking over each other as they excitedly reminisced about their time together during the Crystal Gem rebellion. Eventually Pearl and Ruby had calmed down enough to detach themselves from the large gem. </p><p>
  
</p><p>“Where have you been?” Pearl asked. “We thought you'd been captured! Or worse, shattered.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Shatter me? Pshh, Homeworld couldn't lay a scratch on this Gem.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“We should go tell Sapphire about Bismuth.” he said, wanting to change the subject.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Where <em> is </em>Sapphire?” Bismuth asked, looking around the room for the blue gem. She turned to Ruby. “Did something happen? You two are always together.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Ruby deflated somewhat at the mention of Sapphire. “She’s, um, in her room.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“They’re having an argument.” he supplied, but stopped to think about their situation. Were they even mad at each other? Sure, they weren’t talking to each other, but they also didn’t seem to hate each other. Their anger was more directed at the lies that Rose told them rather than each other. “I think.” he added after a pause.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“That’s… unexpected.” Bismuth said, taken aback. She was quick to perk up again. “Well, argument or not, I’d still like to see her. It’s been a while since we talked.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Sapphire will be absolutely thrilled to see you!” Pearl said, walking over to the temple door and knocking on it. “Sapphire!” She called.</p><p>
  
</p><p>There was no response.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“She must still be upset.” Pearl said.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Let me try.” Bismuth said. She walked up to the door and gave it a light knock. “Sapphire? You in there? It’s me Bismu-”</p><p>
  
</p><p>The door opened before she even finished her sentence. Sapphire appeared with more emotion on her face than Twoie had ever seen from her and hurled herself at the larger gem.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Bismuth!” she cried. </p><p>
  
</p><p>Bismuth laughed. “Is everyone I see today going to throw themselves at me?” she joked before embracing the smaller gem. “It's good to see you, Sapphire.”</p><p>The tender moment was interrupted by the sound of glass shattering. Twoie whipped his head toward the broken window where a green ship could be seen inching closer, and closer to the shore. </p><p>
  
</p><p>They were out of time, Jasper was here.</p><hr/><p>The house was filled with talk of Homeworld and battle plans that made Amethyst feel uneasy and out of place. The first thing she noticed after placing Steven and a still anxious Greg on the floor was the presence of a rainbow-haired gem she had never seen. The gem was seated on the couch next to Pearl, Ruby, and Sapphire.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Twoie’s face was serious as he explained something to the group. “She’ll have a destabilizer so don’t go charging in-”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“What’s going on?” She asked.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Everyone’s attention shifted towards them. </p><p>
  
</p><p>“Guys,” Twoie began, gesturing at the new gem. “This is Bismuth. She’s one of the original members of the Crystal Gems.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Steven, of course, was immediately by Bismuth’s side introducing himself. His wide eyes twinkled with stars and he bombarded the befuddle gem with questions. </p><p>
  
</p><p>She noticed Twoie tense whenever Steven would touch Bismuth and it only made her suspicions grow. According to what Rose and the others had told her, all of the other gems on earth were corrupted, but this gem just so happened to show up at the same time that Homeworld did. </p><p>
  
</p><p>It was too suspicious, but Amethyst didn’t voice her concerns because at the moment they had bigger things to worry about like the creepy space ship that was practically parked outside their house.</p><p>
  
</p><p>The others briefed her on what she had missed, Pearl happily introducing her to Bismuth who had mistaken her for a ‘new recruit’, something which she took slight offense to given that she had been with the Crystal Gems for thousands of years. </p><p>
  
</p><p>While all of this was happening Amethyst saw Twoie pull Greg aside. She couldn’t quite make out what they were talking about, partially because she was half listening to whatever Pearl was saying and partially because they were speaking in hushed whispers. </p><p>
  
</p><p>What she could make out, however, was that it had something to do with Steven. They kept glancing over to where Steven stood and then to the spaceship and then back again to Steven. Greg eventually nodded in agreement to whatever Twoie told him before leaving the house in a hurry.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Isn’t that great Amethyst?” Steven asked her.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Huh?” She said, completely lost in the conversation. She probably should have been paying closer attention. </p><p>
  
</p><p>“Bismuth can turn her arm into a hammer! Isn’t that cool?”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Bismuth extended her hand out, it glowed white for a moment before turning into a large hammer just like Steven had said. </p><p>
  
</p><p>She shrugged. “Yeah, I guess.” She said even though she didn’t really get why Steven was so amazed by that. She could turn into much cooler things than just a hammer.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“So, I take it you’ll be joining us in the battle against Homeworld?” Bismuth asked.</p><p>
  
</p><p>She opened her mouth to respond, but Twoie cut in before she could say anything. “Not everybody.” He said. “Steven will be leaving.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>He walked over to them, a familiar cheeseburger backpack in hand. The conversation she observed between Twoie and Greg made much more sense now. He was going to send Steven away with Greg and the other Humans.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Is that my luggage?” Steven asked, pointing at the overstuffed backpack.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“The rest of Beach City is evacuating, you should too.” Twoie said, handing the bag to Steven who refused to take it. “Dad will be here soon with the van.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“What? But I’m a Crystal Gem too! I can’t just leave!” </p><p>
  
</p><p>He looked around the room for support, for someone to agree with him. Everyone remained silent, even Bismuth who seemed to realize this was an important moment.</p><p>
  
</p><p>She turned away when their gazes met. She was never good at this mushy goodbye stuff. She didn’t want Steven to leave, but she also didn’t want him to get hurt. If Twoie believed that the best course of action was to send Steven away then who was she to argue with him?</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Come on, Steven.” He slung the back across his shoulder and used his free hand to tug Steven toward the door. “We shouldn’t keep dad waiting.” Twoie said just as the sounds of Greg’s van spilled into the house.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Steven jerked away from his touch as if he’d been burned. “I’m not leaving.” He said, voice firm.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Twoie’s mouth twisted into a frown and Amethyst watched with fascination as his cheeks glowed that unnatural pink color she had seen only once before. Twoie never did explain what that was all about and it was something she would definitely ask him about once this whole mess was over. </p><p>
  
</p><p>Twoie took a deep breath and his face returned to its normal color, then in a calm voice he told Steven, “I need to talk to you, alone.” He said while glancing at her and the other gems.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Steven looked like he was going to protest, but the serious expression that Twoie wore must have changed his mind because he nodded silently and followed Twoie outside.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“I’ll be back soon.” Twoie said before leaving.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Steven followed Twoie outside, away from the gems and near his dad who was waiting in his van. Twoie was silent, a series of emotions flashing across his face too fast for Steven to decipher them.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Twoie hesitated for a moment before speaking. “I know you feel like you have to fight, but you’re still really young. You shouldn’t have to deal with any of this.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“I can handle it! I’ve been training really hard and I can summon my shield now.” He put his arm out in front of him and his shield appeared a few moments later. “See? I’m ready to fight.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>He shook his head. “The reason I started training you was so that you could defend yourself. I don’t want you fighting unless you absolutely have to.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“But the earth is my home too! Shouldn’t I be defending it?”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Twoie looked up to the sky and Steven followed his gaze to the large green ship that loomed over them.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Maybe if it was just another corrupted gem, but Jasper isn’t like them.” He paused, a faraway look in his eyes. “She’s dangerous and she won’t hold back especially when she learns that you have mom’s gem.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“But I’m not my mom.” </p><p>
  
</p><p>“As long as you have her gem she won’t believe you. No matter what you say…” he said, his tone suggesting that he had tried to do exactly that and failed.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“I’m a gem.” he said, placing his hand over where his gemstone rested. “I have to stay and fight. It’s my job to protect the earth. I-”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“<em> No, it’s not! </em>”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Steven gasped, eyes wide as he stared at Twoie’s glowing pink face. Something in his eyes caught his attention, something he was too shocked to notice the first time Twoie had turned pink— Diamond pupils. Twoie blinked and they were gone, his eyes along with his face returned to normal. He avoided Steven’s gaze, looking ashamed of what just happened.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“You’re not mom… Homeworld, Jasper— none of this has anything to do with you. The gems mean well, but I know that sometimes they can make you feel like…  you’re her replacement.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>His words stung because they dug into one of Steven’s greatest insecurities— that no matter what he did he would never live up to the memory of his mom. He would never be as strong, or as brave, or kind as her. He would never be good enough, but this could be his chance to prove himself even if the thought of facing off against Homeworld soldiers made his stomach churn.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“You have nothing to prove, you don’t have to fight.” he continued. “When this happened to me I thought I would be ready to face anything… I was wrong.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>That mental image of Twoie being unprepared for anything gave Steven pause. He glanced at the ship again, his earlier confidence fading. He then looked at his dad who was watching them, a worried look on his face.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Trust me Steven, you don’t want to fight Jasper. It’s not a happy memory. I’ll fight her so you won’t have to.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“I… I-I should stay.” he said, but his protest was half hearted and sounded weak even to his own ears. “I can help.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“I know you can.” Twoie said. “But right now I need you to stay safe.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“What about you? Who's going to keep you safe?”</p><p>
  
</p><p>He smiled. “Don’t worry about me. I know how to take care of myself.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“B-but, what if-”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Everything will be fine.” Twoie reassured. He handed him his cheeseburger backpack. “I promise.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>He gaze darted between the threatening ship, the promised safety of his dad’s van, and Twoie’s pleading eyes. His shoulder slumped in defeat. “...Okay.” he said.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Twoie sent a nod to their dad and the van sputtered to life. He clutched at his backpack. He wanted to help, to prove himself as a Crystal Gem, but as the ship approached and as the shore turned an ominous green he came to a startling realization— He was afraid. </p><p>
  
</p><p>He didn’t want to fight alien soldiers, he didn’t want to think about the Diamonds, or about the thousand year war for the earth’s independence. He didn’t want any of this and with Twoie reassurances that everything would be okay, that he would fight so Steven wouldn’t have to it was easy to agree. </p><p>
  
</p><p>It was easy to hop into the van with his dad and let someone else worry about gems stuff for a change. It was easy to watch the green ship fade further and further into the distance, and It was easy to allow himself to be treated like a child even if it made him feel like a coward.</p><p>
  
</p><hr/><p>
  
</p><p>Knowing how events would unfold, Twoie decided, did not make them any easier to watch. The enormous hand ship was just as intimidating now as it was when he was a child. His heart beat spiked as a green ball rolled down the finger of the ship. All of the Crystal Gems next to him stiffened, falling silent as they waited for something to happen.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Peridot was the first gem he got a clear view of as the ball encasing the Homeworld gems disappeared. Twoie almost didn’t recognize her. Not only did she have her limb enhancers on, but her usually bright and curious eyes were now cold and analytical as she scanned the beach.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“That's them, all right.” she said. “They're the ones who keep breaking my machines.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Jasper took a step forward so that she was standing next to the green gem. She towered over Peridot whose limb enhancer gave her an added height boost. “This is it?”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Jasper! They keep interfering with my work!”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Looks like another waste of my time.” She yanked Lapis, who had been hidden from view, forward. “Hey, get over here!”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Lapis twisted her arm out of Jasper’s tight grasp, taking a step away from the taller gem. She looked tired, much more tired than the last time Twoie had seen her. Her hair was messy and she had a frown plastered on her haggard face.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Their gazes met. Recognition and confusion flashed in her wide eyes as she took in his much older appearance.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“This is their base?” Jasper asked.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Yes…” Lapis muttered, sounding defeated. She wrapped her arms around herself and turned away, refusing to meet his gaze.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Jasper kept talking, but Twoie had stopped listening. His mind wandered back to the first time he experienced this, how scared he’d been when he was captured, how relieved he was to have escaped, and how horrified he’d been when Jasper and Lapis fused into Malachite.</p><p>
  
</p><p>She was a hulking, vengeful fusion who had imprisoned herself at the bottom of the ocean for months. After she had been defeated and Lapis was freed, he remembered how Lapis would avoid water— something that she used to love now brought her feelings of anger and regret. Twoie wasn’t going to let that happen again.</p><p>
  
</p><p>The Crystal Gems were shouting now too, warning Homeworld to leave the earth alone. Jasper stood, impassive, with an almost bored look on her face as threat after threat was hurled at her. Even when she was clearly outnumbered, Jasper remained cool and collected as she dropped down from the ship and onto the sand dragging Peridot and Lapis along with her.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Her cold eyes bored through every last member of the Crystal Gems as she sized them up, insulting them as she went along. Pearl was ‘lost and defective’, Amethysts was a ‘puny overcooked runt’, Bismuth and Ruby were ‘gems who had forgotten their place’, and Sapphire was a ‘traitor and a disgrace’.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Hmm? What is that?” She asked when her gaze landed on him.</p><p>
  
</p><p>His muscles tensed and he didn’t answer, it was Peridot who responded. “It calls itself ‘the Steven’ though it seems to have doubled in size since last time I saw it.” her artificial fingers came together to form a screen where she hastily added new information to her logs.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“He's just a human!” Lapis shouted, her voice tinged with desperation as she tried to shield him from Jasper’s wrath. “He isn't a threat at all! He's not one of them!”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“I know what a human is.” was Jasper’s cold, dismissive reply. “You don't need me for this. Just blast them with the ship”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Lapis’ mouth fell agape at Jasper’s words, her pleading eyes turned toward an apathetic Peridot who was already swiping at her monitor, pulling up the screen that controlled the ship's weapons system.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Ugh, fine.” she said, drawing a circle on her screen.</p><p>
  
</p><p>The ground rumbled beneath him as the ship began its ascent, a single mechanical finger was pointed in their direction. A ball of bright, crackling energy manifested itself, quickly growing in size.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Twoie took a step forward. “Everyone, stay behind me!” he ordered.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Peridot tapped on her screen. “Firing.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>He thrust his arm in front of him and summoned his shield. He ignored the surprised gasp of Bismuth and focused on making the shield big enough to protect everybody.</p><p>
  
</p><p>The beam from the ship was blinding as it crashed into his shield. The last time this had happened Twoie was a child, weak and woefully unprepared for an attack of such strength and magnitude. He had barely fended off the blast, his shield disappearing and his body crumpling under the strain of using so much energy.</p><p>
  
</p><p>This time he was older, stronger, and prepared. The impact of the hit pushed Twoie back only a few inches. Sand flew up into the air and swirled violently around them. When the dust settled Twoie along with the rest of the Crystal gems remained standing, unharmed.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“That shield! That symbol!” Jasper shouted, her calm demeanor cracking and giving way to anger. “You! You have the power of Rose Quartz!”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Now do you believe I needed an escort?” Peridot said.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Fire a barrage! Widespread!”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Peridot swiped her finger across the monitor in a single rapid motion. The finger sprung to life again, glowing briefly before another beam of energy was shot at them and just like the last attack, Twoie was able to successfully block it.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Jasper’s anger only grew at another failed attack. “Rose, why do you look like that? Why a-”</p><p>
  
</p><p>He signaled for the gems to remain where they were before rushing her. He summoned spiked bubbles on both his fists and slammed them at Jasper’s head. The first one connected, but Jasper was quick to recover and moved out of the way before his second fist could land.</p><p>
  
</p><p>She clutched at the spot on her head where his fist connected and threw her head back in laughter. She summoned her helmet and cracked her knuckles.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“I don’t know why you’re hiding behind that ridiculous disguise Rose, but I’m going to make you pay for what you did to my Diamond.” She pulled out a destabilizer. “Priming gem destabilizer.” she said before charging at him, weapon in hand.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Instead of moving out of the way of her attack he caught the destabilizer with his bare hands, the pulsing electricity caused a strange sensation to fill his body but didn’t actually hurt him. He used her surprise to his advantage and yanked the weapon from her hand, snapping it in two before she had the chance to steal it back.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Now!” He shouted at the Crystal Gems.</p><p>
  
</p><p>They wasted no time, immediately springing into action.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Hey, ugly!” Amethyst shouted as she wrapped her whip around the startled gem. She pulled on it. Jasper stumbled and fell to her knees. </p><p>
  
</p><p>Sapphire used her speed and was at Jasper’s side in an instant. “You’re not welcome here!” She used her ice abilities and began to freeze Jasper’s legs to the ground.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Ruby was not far behind her, screaming incoherently as she pummeled the detained gems face with a barrage of punches.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Stay out of this!” Jasper roared. “I don’t have time to deal with you defective gems!”</p><p>
  
</p><p>She grasped the whip and pulled on it with enough strength to yank it out of Amethyst’s hand. She punched the ice that was trapping her to the ground. Ruby attempted to stop her, but Jasper caught her fist and would have slammed the small gem into the ground were it not for Sapphire. The blue gem threw some ice into Jasper’s face, temporarily blinding her and forcing her to drop Ruby.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Enough!” Jasper shouted, rubbing the frost out of her eyes before snatching Sapphire off the ground.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Sapphire!” Ruby said, running over to try and protect the blue gem.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Jasper smirked down at her before squeezing Sapphire with enough force that her form dissipated and she retreated back into her gem. She threw the gemstone into the sand. “Pathetic.” she said.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“No!” Ruby shouted, enraged. She charged at the larger gem recklessly throwing punches left and right. “You’ll pay for that!”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Jasper didn’t so much as flinch as she took all of Ruby’s punches. “Is that all you got?” she asked, catching her fist and slamming her into the ground with so much force that she poofed on impact.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Twoie watched horrified as two of the Crystal Gems were put out of commission with barely any effort on Jasper's part. This wasn’t going as planned.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Amethyst!” he said. “Try restraining her again!”</p><p>
  
</p><p>The purpled gem snapped out of her shock and nodded in agreement, summoning her whip once more.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Pearl! Bismuth!” he said. “Get ready to attack!”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Right!” Pearl said, gripping her spear.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Bismuth shape shifted her hands into sharp weapons. “You can count on me!”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Amethyst threw her whip at Jasper, but unlike last time the orange gem was prepared for the attack. She caught the whip and wrapped it around her hand, pulling it so that Amethyst was thrown further down the beach.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Did you really think I would fall for that trick twice?”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Twoie grimaced. Thinking quickly he summoned a shield and threw it at her face successfully stunning her long enough for Pearl and Bismuth to attack. Jasper blocked Pearl’s spear, but it left her wide open to Bismuth’s attack. The rainbow-haired gem’s sharp hand slashed at Jasper’s chest making her stumble and release the spear.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Pearl used the opportunity to charge her spear before sending a blast of white, hot energy directly at Jasper’s face. Twoie kept throwing shields and the occasional punch at Jasper and it continued like this for a while. Twoie smirked as more and more injured began to appear on Jasper. He could hear Amethyst running toward them ready to rejoin the fight, they were winning.</p><p>
  
</p><p>He hadn’t been expecting Peridot to join in on the fight— he certainly hadn’t been expecting her to pull out a destabilizer. The yellow energy it emitted crackled threateningly in the air. He saw her smirk as she charged at Bismuth, the warning died in his throat when her hit landed and the rainbow haired gem disappeared in a cloud of smoke and sand.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Bismuth!” Pearl cried. </p><p>
  
</p><p>He threw a shield at Peridot’s hand and was successful at knocking the destabilizer out of her hand.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“You two deal with her!” he ordered. “I’ll take care of Jasper!”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Pearl looked like she wanted to protest, but knew the situation was too dire to be hesitating. She nodded and turned to Amethyst, “Try restraining her legs while I take her out.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“You got it, P!” Amethyst said as she charged at the green gem.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Don’t ignore me, Rose!” Jasper said.</p><p>
  
</p><p>She was quick and managed to land a blow on his head. He crumpled onto the ground and clutching at his injury, a familiar static filled his head. She didn’t give him a chance to recover and kicked, sending him skidding across the sand.</p><p>
  
</p><p>He managed to summon his shield and defend himself from her next attack. He strained under the weight of her punches. He needed to end this quickly. He looked around for something to turn the tides of this fight, but with Pearl and Amethyst busy fighting Peridot he was all alone.</p><p>
  
</p><p>A familiar energy buzzed under his skin, turning it bright pink and for once he didn’t try and suppress his power. He welcomed it, allowing the strength to flow through him. His body was engulfed in a pink glow as he pushed Jasper backwards.</p><p>
  
</p><p>He put everything he had in his next punch and was rewarded when Jasper was sent flying several feet across the sand. He dashed over to her, pulling her off the ground before she had a chance to compose herself and launched her into the air. He jumped up after her and with the help of his powers he was able to float above her. He slammed both his fists into her and sent her crashing back down to the beach.</p><p>
  
</p><p>He knew he had done some real damage when she didn’t instantly get back up. She tittered back and forth, swaying as she struggled to remain standing.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“I won’t let it end like this!”</p><p>
  
</p><p>She barreled toward him, her body becoming a blur that he ordinarily wouldn’t be able to see, but his powers made it easy. He caught her fist just before it reached him. Jasper’s eyes were wide and her pupils were the size of pinpricks. She stared at him, mouth agape.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“That power…”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Give it up Jasper.” he said. “You’ve lost.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>She shook her head. “I’ll never surrender to you, Rose!”</p><p>
  
</p><p>She pried her fist out of his hand and threw more punches at him, but her movements were sloppy and weak. He had no trouble sidestepping all of her attacks, but even in her exhausted state she was relentless and continued to try and hit him.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Jasper’s clumsy movements left her wide open for an attack. He sent a spiked fist to her head. It landed and managed to crack the visor of her helmet. He sent a harsh kick toward her legs, causing her to stumble and fall face first into the sand.</p><p>
  
</p><p>She let out a frustrated growl and tried to get back up, her legs shook before she collapsed onto the sand again. He moved to poof and bubble her, not expecting her to grab onto his ankle and pull him down to the ground with her.</p><p>
  
</p><p>He put his shield up, ready to defend himself but Jasper didn’t move. Her hand remained on his ankle but her hold was weak enough that he could probably escape it if he wanted to. He watched curiously as she peered up at him a conflicted look on her face.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“I don’t understand.” she muttered. “How could I lose to you? Where did you get that much power?”</p><p>
  
</p><p>He froze, eyes widening and refusing to respond. He could see the gears turning in her head as she stared at him, searching for answers. He moved to bubble her again, stopping when Jasper’s eyes lit up in realization.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Your eyes…” she murmured.</p><p>
  
</p><p>His blood ran cold.</p><hr/><p>Slivers of moonlight spilled into the small motel room where Steven laid awake in his bed. He couldn’t sleep. He had tried counting sheep, listening to music, tossing and turning in hopes of finding that one comfortable spot that would lull him to sleep, but nothing had worked. His eyes were stapled open wide as he blinked at the peeling ceiling above him. He shifted to look out the small window near his bed and stared at the starry night sky.</p><p>
  
</p><p>It was a beautiful night and he was with his peacefully snoring dad, but he just couldn’t bring himself to close his eyes and rest. Every time he was about to drift off to sleep, guilt would claw at him forcing his eyes open. He had just left Twoie and the gems to fight alone and even though Twoie had insisted he leave he couldn’t help but feel awful for doing so.</p><p>
  
</p><p>He could have helped them! He knew how to summon his shield now thanks to his training, but he chose to run away with his dad instead. He was scared, so when Twoie begged him to leave he was all too happy to comply. He mentally kicked himself. What was he thinking? He was a gem! He should have stayed to fight. All he could think about now was whether his family was safe.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Steven shifted under the covers again and screwed his eyes shut, willing himself to sleep. It didn’t work and in his frustration he kicked the covers off of him and sat up in his bed. He needed to go back, needed to make sure they were safe. He stole a glance at his dad, who was sound asleep before making a decision.</p><p>
  
</p><p>He walked over to the night stand next to his bed where he had seen pen and paper earlier and began writing a note for his dad:</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em> ‘Went to go help Twoie and the gems. Be back soon. Love, Steven.’ </em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>He drew plenty of hearts and stars on the letter to reassure his dad that everything would be fine before slipping on his jeans and red hoodie. Steven tiptoed passed the bed where his snoring dad lay sleeping. His hand hovered over the door knob for a second before he slowly opened the door, wincing as it creaked. Thankfully, his dad was a heavy sleeper so he was able to slip out undetected.</p><p>
  
</p><p>It was only until he got to the edge of the parking lot that Steven realized he had no real plan. He wasn’t old enough to drive and even if he was he didn’t have any car keys, and there was no way he would be able to walk back to Beach City even if he could remember where it was in location to the motel. He was just about to give up and walk back to the motel room when he caught sight of something bright pink and fluffy sniffing around his dad’s van.</p><p>
  
</p><p>It was Lion! He wasted no time dashing up to the large cat and embracing him. Did Twoie send Lion to come get him? Or did Lion just have an innate sense of knowing when Steven needed him? He was magical after all.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“C’mon Lion, take us to Beach City.” he said.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Lion blinked up at him, tilting his head in confusion before yawning and plopping onto the ground. He stretched his limbs out on the ground and shut his eyes.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Lion!” Steven shouted before realizing how loud he was being and promptly lowered his voice. “Now is not the time for naps. You need to take me to Beach City. Twoie and the gems need my help.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Lion huffed in response and rolled over to face away from Steven.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Please, I have to make sure they’re okay.” he pleaded, but Lion didn’t so much as budge. Since begging wasn’t getting Steven anywhere, he decided to try bribery.  “I’ll give you a Lion Licker if you take me to Beach City.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Lion opened his eyes, but still refused to move.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Ok, how about two Lion Lickers?”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Lion sprung up from his spot on the ground. Steven smiled, glad that his plan had worked before hopping onto the large pink cat. Lion roared, opening a swirling vortex and jumping inside of it.</p><p>
  
</p><p>They reappeared just on the outskirts of Beach City. Steven’s heart dropped when he noticed the hand ship parked on the shore in front of his house. </p><p>
  
</p><p>“They must still be fighting!” he said. “Hurry Lion!”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Lion took off in a run toward the house and he used that time to dial Connie. </p><p>
  
</p><p>“Come on, pick up…” he said as he pressed his phone against his ear. He groaned when it went to voicemail. “Hey, Connie, it's Steven. Just... seeing what you were up to. Don't know if you knew, but there's some crazy stuff going on with a giant space hand and we all might die, so, uh, I guess call me back when you get this and talk to you soon! Uh, bye!”</p><p>
  
</p><p>He ended the call just as they arrived at the house. He expected to be greeted by the sight of an epic battle and hordes of enemy soldiers, but the beach in front of his house was empty. The space was abandoned and it was eerily quiet.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Where did everybody go?” he wondered aloud, scouring the beach for any signs of activity. When he found none, he hopped off Lion and made his way over to the house.</p><p>
  
</p><p>He caught sight of something large and orange in the corner of his vision, but before he could turn around to properly assess what it was, something grabbed onto his hoodie and snatched him off the ground.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Where do you think you’re going?” a gruff voice asked. He was spun around and was greeted by the sight of an irate orange gem. She was tall, far taller than he was and he suspected she was even taller than Garnet and Twoie. “No one is allowed on the premises unless my Diamond allows it.” </p><p>
  
</p><p>“Your Diamond?” he questioned. “Are you talking about Twoie?”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Maybe this gem was another of Twoie’s friends like Bismuth? But where was Twoie? Where was anybody for that matter? He was starting to worry something awful had happened to them.</p><p>
  
</p><p>At the mention of Twoie the gems face darkened, her eyes narrowing as she brought him closer. “How do <em> you </em> know that name, Human?” she asked, her voice deep and threatening. “Are you planning on attacking my Diamond?”</p><p>
  
</p><p>He flinched. On second thought maybe this wasn’t one of Twoie’s friends. She was far too scary and aggressive, nothing like the friendly Bismuth he had met earlier that day. He squirmed under her hold, glancing at the door to the house. He was so close! If he could get away from this gem then maybe he could find Twoie or one of the gems and figure out what happened.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Answer me!” she roared in his face.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Let me go!” He continued to struggle against her. He swung his legs around wildly, hoping one of them would hit her and she would let him go.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Jasper, put him down!” a familiar voice called from above.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Not a moment later he was dropped onto the sand below. He quickly scrambled to his feet, summoned his shield and braced himself for a barrage of attacks, but they never came. He put away his shield when he realized the orange gem wasn’t even looking at him anymore. She had turned around and was bowing her head low to someone on top of the stairs that lead to his house. The figure dropped down so that they were next to Jasper. Steven gasped in surprise when the figure came into view— It was Twoie!</p><p>
  
</p><p>“My Diamond.” Jasper greeted, her head still bowed.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“You don’t have to do that Jasper.” Twoie said in an exasperated voice.</p><p>
  
</p><p>The orange gem, Jasper, immediately straightened up and brought her arms up in a salute. “Yes, my Diamond.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Twoie winced at the use of his title, but didn’t make any further comments. He walked past Jasper, stopping when he reached Steven. Steven expected Twoie to scold him for coming back, but there was no anger on his face, only concern.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Are you alright? Does dad know you’re here?”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“I'm fine.” he said. “And I left him a note.”  His eyes darted toward Jasper who had moved away, presumably to give them some privacy, but she was still eyeing him suspiciously. “What happened?”</p><p> </p><p>“Let’s go inside.” He said. “I have <em> a lot </em> to catch you up on.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0017"><h2>17. New Normal</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Everyone tries to adjust to their new situation.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Peridot’s mission was a complete and utter failure. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Not only had she failed to stop these so-called ‘Crystal Gems’ from interfering with her work, but she had also managed to get captured. As if things couldn’t get any worse, the Jasper that was assigned to her had turned traitor and was now working for the enemy. Peridot was fairly certain that Jasper had cracked her gem at some point during the battle because there was no other logical explanation for what the soldier gem was claiming— that Pink Diamond wasn’t actually shattered.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The mere thought was absurd! Every gem who had existed for more than five minutes knew that Pink Diamond was shattered thousands of years ago. To claim otherwise was to ignore basic historical fact. There was no way Pink Diamond was still around and even on the off chance that she was, she wouldn’t be living on such a sad rock of a planet as earth, and she certainly wouldn’t be taking on the form of a human.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Peridot struggled against the sharp whip that currently restrained her, twisting and contorting her body in uncomfortable ways in hopes of wriggling her way to freedom. She stole a glance at the window where the green handship she arrived in could still be seen and was filled with renewed determination. All she needed to do was escape from her bindings and make a run for the ship. She would return to Homeworld, report Jasper’s defective behavior to Yellow Diamond and everything would be set right.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>In her haste to escape, Peridot failed to notice the presence of the human who was the cause of her current problems. He had somehow managed to take a seat next to her without her noticing and was now watching her with a curious expression on his face. Jasper was hovering next to him and sent a sharp glare in her direction. She let out a yelp of surprise and her body lurched forward without permission, going from the soft cushions where she had been placed to the hard wooden floor.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Peridot groaned. Her face had taken the brunt of the fall and was now throbbing in pain. She was about to start the process of picking herself off the ground, which would have been difficult considering her hands were still bound to her sides, when a pair of hands picked her up off the ground and gently set her back onto the cushions.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She looked up to see the apologetic face of her captor. “Get your touch-stumps off me, you Steven!” she shouted, wriggling in his hold.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He immediately released her and she almost fell again, only managing to stay upright because Jasper caught her before she hit the ground. Peridot shrunk into herself as Jasper pulled her close and growled in her face.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Watch your tongue! You will address my Diamond with respect!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s okay, Jasper. Put her down.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Jasper sent her another sharp look before roughly dropping her back onto the white cushions. “Yes, my Diamond.” she said and to Peridot’s disgust she bowed and made the Diamond salute.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Why are you listening to that human?!” She asked Jasper. “Have you forgotten about the mission?!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“That </span>
  <em>
    <span>human</span>
  </em>
  <span> is Pink Diamond. Show some respect!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She groaned in frustration. Jasper seemed convinced the Steven was a Diamond and Peridot doubted that she would be able to convince the brute otherwise. Some fancy fighting techniques were, apparently, all that Jasper needed to turn traitor. Not that Peridot was surprised, soldier gems were made for their strength not their intellect.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She addressed the human, hoping he would be easier to intimidate. “I demand to be released!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He paused and actually seemed to be considering her request. “If I release you, will you try and run away?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“... No.” she lied.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He shrugged. “Okay, then hold still so I can get this whip off of you.” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>To Peridot’s surprise he actually did start to detangle her from her confinements, pulling the whip off of her until she was free. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She stared at him. He blinked back at her. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She made a run for the door.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Freedom is mine!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Large hands grabbed onto her torso preventing her from progressing any farther. Jasper’s smirking face was the last thing Peridot saw before she disappeared into a cloud of green smoke.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Amethyst looked up from her spot in the kitchen when she heard Peridot’s shrill yell. Jasper was crushing the green gem, her arms squeezing her body until she poofed. Ouch. That didn’t look fun. Metallic green parts clattered uselessly onto the floor.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I was really hoping she wouldn’t run.” Twoie muttered as he secured Peridot’s gemstone and placed it on the coffee table.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Her eyes darted over to a despondent Lapis who she was supposed to be guarding and then back again to the strange pieces of Peridot scattered on the floor. She was getting bored just watching Lapis and she was pretty sure she wouldn’t run away. She considered staying for a moment before shrugging to herself and walking over to the spot where Peridot had been poofed.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Ughh, sick, there's bits of her all over.” she said as she poked one of the pieces with her foot, causing it to roll away.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“They're her limb enhancers, they’re not a part of her.” Twoie explained as he gathered up the artificial limbs in his arms and placed them in a haphazard pile next to the green gemstone. “Thanks for stopping her, Jasper.” he said, turning to the large gem. “but you didn’t have to poof her.” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Amethyst watched in fascination as a large smile stretched itself across Jasper’s face at the praise she received from Twoie. Was it even possible to look that creepy while smiling? Amethyst turned her attention back to the robotic limbs on the table, grabbing a long piece that resembled a foot and turning it around in her hands. If these were Peridot’s fake legs then she must actually be really short.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span> “Yes, my Diamond.” Jasper said, her arms forming that weird Diamond salute.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie winced. “You don’t have to call me that. Just Twoie is fine.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes, my… Twoie.” Jasper said.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Amethyst choked back a laugh at how uncertain Jasper sounded. Ever since she realized Twoie was a Diamond she had been following him around like a lost puppy, eagerly listening to everything he told her.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Her curiosity sated, Amethyst placed the green leg back onto the table where Peridot’s gemstone rested, unbubbled. “Shouldn’t we bubble her?” she asked, pointing at Peridot’s gemstone. “What if she tries to escape again?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“No, it’s fine.” Twoie assured her. “Peridot is pretty harmless without her limb enhancers.” he glanced at the window. “Although, we probably should be guarding the hand ship better…”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Jasper immediately perked up. “I can guard the ship, my Diamond.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“You don’t have to call me that,” he repeated, a touch of exasperation in his voice. “But it would be great if you could patrol the handship and make sure no one uses it.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Understood, my Diamond.” Jasper said, giving one more salute before turning on her heel and bolting outside toward the ship.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>With Jasper finally gone, Amethyst allowed herself to laugh. “Man, this is so weird.” she told Twoie. “She totally worships you, dude.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie groaned before taking a seat on the couch. “Ugh, don’t remind me. It’s going to take forever to convince her to stop treating me like royalty.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“But aren’t you kinda like royalty?” she asked. “Y’know since you’re a Diamond or whatever.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, bu-” he began, but was interrupted by the sound of glass shattering.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Amethyst whipped around, her hand hovering over her gemstone as she scanned the room for the source of the noise. There, in the kitchen stood Lapis with pieces of a mug scattered on the floor around her. Her eyes were wide and confused as they flitted around the house before finally resting on Twoie.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The blue gem pointed a shaky finger in Twoie’s direction. “You’re a Diamond!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It was such an obvious statement that it left Amethyst speechless for a moment. Did all gems act this weird around a Diamond? Judging by the behavior of Jasper and Lapis, Amethyst assumed that, yeah, they did.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Uh, yeah.” Amethyst said, lowering her hand back to her side. “Didn’t you hear anything that Jasper said?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Lapis didn’t seem to be paying her any attention, her focus was solely directed at an uncomfortable looking Twoie. She ran a hand through her disheveled hair, muttering under her breath as she frantically paced the kitchen.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie looked at her for guidance, but Amethyst could only shrug in response. The only hysterical gem she was used to dealing with was Pearl and Amethyst only ever managed to her freak out more. She didn’t know the first thing about Lapis or how to calm her down.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“... You good?” She asked in an attempt to be comforting.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I thought Pink Diamond was… and Rose Quartz… ” Lapis trailed off. “This doesn’t make any sense!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Water began to dribble out from the faucet in the sink and floated in the air around the blue gem. Amethyst took a step back from the distressed gem, recalling just how dangerous she could be when she had access to water.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie stood up from his spot on the couch and took tentative steps toward Lapis as if he were approaching a wounded animal. “Everything is going to be okay.” he said, his voice calm and soothing despite the increasing amount of water hovering near them. “I can explain everything. I just need you to calm down.” he said, eyeing the ball of water.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Lapis followed his gaze, her eyes widening as she took in the water floating behind her. Whatever power she was using to hold it up disappeared the second she noticed what she was doing. It spilled onto the kitchen floor, turning into a harmless puddle of water.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I didn’t…” she backed away from them, her back pressing into the fridge. “I’m sorry.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Amethyst.” Twoie said, not taking his eyes off of Lapis. “Why don’t you go check on Pearl and the others while I have a talk with Lapis.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She observed Lapis, who was on the verge of a mental breakdown, for a moment longer before deciding that her presence would probably only make things worse. The only person that Lapis liked was Steven and, by extension, Twoie.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She nodded. “Shout if you need anything.” she said before walking into the temple to find Pearl.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It took a lot of soothing words and reassurances to get Lapis to move from the damp kitchen to the more comforting cushions of the couch. She sat with her knees pulled close to her chest, looking as lost as Twoie felt.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Where to even start when explaining something as complicated as this? Did Lapis even know that Rose Quartz was his mom? Did she even know what a mom was? Twoie doubted it.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m not Pink Diamond or Rose Quartz.” He began, figuring it was as good a place as any.  “I might have her gem, but I’m not her. Rose Quartz, my mom, and Pink Diamond were the same person.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s why Jasper said you were…” Lapis muttered. “But Pink Diamond was shattered, Blue Diamond saw the shards herself.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie cringed at the mention of shards, the memory of Pearl stabbing Pink Diamond flashing in his mind. The shards were eerily convincing.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“They weren't real.” He said. “Pink Diamond faked her shattering to put an end to the war. She thought if the other Diamonds believed she was shattered they would leave the earth alone.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“But she was a Diamond! The earth was her colony. She could have stopped the colonization if she wanted. Why did she pretend to be a Quartz? Why drag innocent gems into a war she started with herself?” Lapis asked, an undercurrent of bitterness in her voice. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He heaved out a sigh. “It wasn’t that simple. Sure, she was a Diamond but the other Diamonds didn’t respect her authority. They would punish her if she acted out and not wanting to colonize a planet was considered acting out.” A chill ran down his spine as he recalled the darkness of the tower, a place that he and his mom were all too familiar with. “Since they wouldn’t listen to her as Pink Diamond she forced them to pay attention to her as Rose Quartz.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He paused his explanation to watch her reaction, but Lapis had rested her head on her knees and turned away from him. Her head was tilted to the portrait of Rose Quartz that hung above the door. The serene eyes of Rose Quartz bore through him, leaving behind feelings of inadequacy and repressed anger. He pulled his gaze away from the painting and focused on Lapis instead. </span>
</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s funny.” She said after a beat of silence. “Even before you freed me from that mirror, I always felt like there was something different about you.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He quirked an eyebrow at the statement, but didn’t otherwise respond in fear of upsetting the blue gem.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“At first I thought it was because you were human. Then, you told me you were a Crystal Gem and I didn’t know what to think. A half-gem, half-human hybrid?” She laughed, it was a tired noise devoid of any humor. “You had this </span>
  <em>
    <span>aura</span>
  </em>
  <span> about you, I don’t really know how to explain it.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Ah, that made more sense. After all, a pink aura emitting from his gem was how he convinced Blue and Yellow of his own status as a Diamond. Could all gems sense his aura? Or was it only the ones that were paying attention to it?</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Lapis sighed, her posture becoming more relaxed as she processed and accepted the recent turn of events. Even though she was still turned away from him, he could hear the smile in her voice.  “I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that you’re really a Diamond, Steven.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie froze at the mention of the name Steven. Should he tell her that he wasn’t really Steven? He didn’t want to lie to her, but he also didn’t want her to freak out when another much younger Steven showed up. “I…” he hesitated.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I almost didn’t recognize you when I first saw you.” All of the previous confusion and fear in her voice had dried up and vanished, leaving behind a curiosity. “Do all humans change that fast?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I, um, well…” He stole a glance at the painting of Rose Quartz that seemed to be watching him, silently judging his actions. Nothing ever good ever came of hiding the truth, he decided. “I’m not Steven!” He blurted out before he could change his mind.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Lapis’ head whipped around so fast he was surprised she didn’t poof under the strain. Her eyebrows were furrowed and she had a guarded look in her eyes, a look he recognized was reserved for people she didn’t trust. It was a jarring experience to have that look directed at him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>His explanation came out rushed. “I mean, </span>
  <em>
    <span>technically</span>
  </em>
  <span> I am Steven, but not really. It’s kind of complicated and involves gem tech. The point is, I’m not the Steven you know.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Her cold expression morphed into one of confusion. “What?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m from the future.” he said.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“The futu-” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>A shout startled Lapis into silence. He strained his ears and was able to recognize the gruff voice as belonging to Jasper.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ll be back!” He shouted over his shoulder to Lapis. He wasted no time in springing to his feet and flinging the door open in his rush to get outside. He scanned the beach, peering into the darkness of the night in search of Jasper.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Answer me!” Jasper’s gruff voice bellowed from below him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie snapped his gaze downward and was greeted by the sight of Steven wildly flailing his limbs around as he struggled in Jasper’s hold. His mouth went dry.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Jasper, put him down!” he ordered, the words leaving his mouth before he even had the time to process them. Ordinarily, he would feel guilty for demanding Jasper to listen to him because of the unfair amount of power he had over her, but in the moment all he could focus on was the wide and fearful eyes of Steven.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He leapt off the wooden railings and landed safely onto the sand below where Jasper and Steven both stood. His eyes darted to Steven who had his shield out in front of him and a brave but fearful look plastered on his face. Twoie allowed himself to relax once he was sure Steven was unharmed. Jasper, it seemed, had only startled the boy and other than lifting him in the air had not physically hurt him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>An uncomfortable feeling settled in his stomach at the way Jasper bowed to him. “My Diamond.” she said.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“You don’t have to do that, Jasper.” he reminded her, hoping this time she would listen. Unsurprisingly, she did not and only stood up straighter, her arms frozen in the shape of the Diamond salute.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes, my Diamond.” she said.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He stifled a sigh and walked over to Steven instead. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Are you alright?” he asked and after a quick glance around the beach in which he failed to locate the van he added, “Does dad know you’re here?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I'm fine.” Steven said, his eyes drifting behind Twoie where Jasper no doubt stood in waiting. “And I left him a note. What happened?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Nothing, </span>
  </em>
  <span>he wanted to say in hopes of keeping Steven away from the complicated mess of a situation that he was currently in, but he realized that Steven was far too curious and far too stubborn to accept that answer. He stole a peek at Jasper who was indeed just standing a little ways behind him, a suspicious look on her face probably meant for Steven. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie hadn’t been planning on Jasper finding out that he had Pink Diamond’s gemstone. He had just wanted to beat her and keep the earth safe from Homeworld, but she had noticed his Diamond eyes. That coupled with the power he used and his pink glowing skin made it easy for her to connect the dots and now for better or for worse, he was stuck with a Jasper who was far too happy to take orders from him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She seemed to take the news of Rose Quartz being Pink Diamond well. At least as far as Twoie could tell since she hadn’t actually brought up the topic, but there was no telling how she would react to there being two Pink Diamonds. Then, there was still the subject of what to do with Peridot and Lapis. Plus, the ongoing issue with Garnet and having to tell Bismuth that Ros—</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He suppressed another sigh. He would deal with everything later.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Let’s go inside.” he said. “I have</span>
  <em>
    <span> a lot</span>
  </em>
  <span> to catch you up on.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The wooden stairs leading to the house creaked under the weight of the orange gem that was glaring at him. Steven increased his speed and positioned himself closer to Twoie, grabbing onto his hand for added security.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie gave his hand a comforting squeeze, then without turning to look at the large gem said, “It’s fine, Jasper. He’s not going to hurt me.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Jasper didn’t reply, but Steven felt the intensity of her glare lessen.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The house was empty, save for the presence of a blue gem that he instantly recognized. It was Lapis! She looked up at the sound of them entering, relief and another emotion Steven didn’t recognize flooding her eyes when their gazes met.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Lapis!” he shouted, running over to embrace her in a tight hug. “You’re okay!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She returned the hug, but pulled away after a few moments and with her hands still resting on his shoulders she stared at him. Her gaze then shifted over to Twoie before settling back on him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Lapis?” he questioned, unsure of what she was looking for. Did he have something on his face? Or maybe he had food stuck in between his teeth again?</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Is it true?” she asked. “Is </span>
  <em>
    <span>he</span>
  </em>
  <span> really you from the future?” her eyes darted back over to Twoie.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>A light bulb went off in Steven’s head as he realized the cause of her strange behavior. She didn’t know who Twoie was which made sense since he had shown up after Steven had freed Lapis from the mirror. Seeing both of them must have been confusing for her.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He opened his mouth to clear up any misunderstandings, but Jasper was in his face before he could say anything. He wilted under her intense, scrutinizing gaze and inched closer to Lapis.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Leave. Us. Alone.” Lapis spat, her voice cold and bitter.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Jasper,” Twoie said, his voice instantly catching the attention of the large gem. “There’s something I need to tell you.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Thankfully, that was enough to get Jasper moving back to Twoie’s side. Steven breathed a sigh of relief at the comforting distance between him and the orange gem. Did she hate him or something? Or maybe she just really liked making people uncomfortable? Whatever the case, she couldn’t be that bad if Twoie was friends with her. At least, Steven thought they were friends. Jasper certainly seemed to like Twoie or at least respect him enough to listen to him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I probably should have told you this sooner,” Twoie began, rubbing the back of his neck. “But with everything that happened I kind of forgot. I guess I was worried you would freak out, but you’ve been, um, handling everything else pretty well so that’s good. I just…” he took a deep breath. “This is going to sound really weird, but I’m from the future and Steven, the human, is me.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The silence that followed after Twoie’s statement was deafening and uncomfortable. Steven stole a glance at Lapis who had stiffened beside him. Her brows were scrunched up in thought as she studied Twoie’s face.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s true.” he announced, standing up from his spot on the couch and moving so that he was standing right next to Twoie. “Twoie is me from the future.” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“So it is true…” Lapis muttered loud enough for Steven to hear.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven perked up, glad that he managed to convince at least one of the two gems. Jasper was still as a statue, staring at him without so much as blinking. It was honestly starting to creep him out a bit. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Don’t you see the resemblance?” he asked, batting his eyelashes as he made eye contact with Jasper. Twoie remained impassive.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He frowned at her lack of a reaction. Thinking Jasper wanted more proof, Steven lifted up his shirt just high enough to show off his gem.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“See?” he said, using his free hand to lift up Twoie’s shirt. “We have the same gem and everything.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Jasper blinked.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Finding Pearl was easy. She was in her room like Amethyst expected her to be. What was decidedly harder was waiting. She never understood why other gems took so long to reform. It was easy. She, personally, never took longer than a few hours to come back after being poofed.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Ugh, how much longer is this going to take?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Well,” Pearl said, examining the three gemstones cradled in her hands. “Ruby and Sapphire were both poofed in battle and Bismuth was hit by a destabilizer, so it may be a while before they reform.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Can’t we just leave them here?” she asked. “It’s not like they’re in any real danger. Plus, I’m getting really bored just watching them.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“We need to be here to explain the… situation to them. If we don’t they will attack Jasper on sight which will only lead to unnecessary violence.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She groaned in defeat, realizing Pearl had a point. “Don’t you at least have anything interesting in your room?” She threw herself onto the wet ground. The water flew up into the air and splashed Pearl in the face. “Or is all just boring water?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl juggled the gemstone’s in one of her hands while she used the other to wipe at her face. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“Amethyst.”</span>
  </em>
  <span> she hissed, sending the purple gem a sharp look. “Take this more seriously, you almost made me drop them.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Amethyst rolled her eyes. “Relax, P.” she said. “Everything’s fine. Twoie kicked Jasper’s butt so hard that she’s working for us now and we captured Peridot, so there’s nothing to worry about. We won.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“We didn’t ‘win’, Jasper was just able to ascertain that Twoie possessed a Diamond gemstone. She’s only obeying him because she believes he is Pink Diamond.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Why do you care about what Jasper believes? She’s on our side now. That's all that matters, right?” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Because</span>
  </em>
  <span>, Amethyst,” Pearl began, her voice strained and nervous. “If she stops believing that Twoie is Pink Diamond, or if she loses respect for him then she won’t hesitate to attack us. Also, in case you’ve forgotten we still have a huge </span>
  <em>
    <span>warship</span>
  </em>
  <span> parked outside the temple. What if Homeworld uses it to track our location? What if they try to contact Jasper? What if Perid-”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Woah, dude, calm down.” Amethyst said, but her reassurance fell on deaf ears. Pearl was now pacing back and forth, her eyes wide and dark with worry. Amethyst stood up and moved to stand in front of Pearl, causing the pale gem to stop her anxious pacing to look down at her. “Listen, Pearl maybe all the bad junk that you’re talking about will happen, or maybe it won’t. I don’t know. What I </span>
  <em>
    <span>do</span>
  </em>
  <span> know is that we just beat Jasper and got a member of the original Crystal Gems on our side.” she said, gesturing toward the rainbow colored gem still cradled in Pearl’s hand. “So, can you at least try to calm down and enjoy this win.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl’s shoulders tensed and for a moment Amethyst believed that she would get yelled— or worse— lectured at by the taller gem, but the tension in Pearl’s shoulders soon evaporated. Her eyes softened, losing their wide and frenzied look.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl sighed. “I suppose there’s nothing wrong with enjoying our victory—”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, we totally kicked Jasper’s butt!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“—</span>
  <em>
    <span>even,</span>
  </em>
  <span> if we have other issues to worry about. We can worry about them later.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Just then, one of the gemstone’s from Pearl’s hand floated and twirled in the air like a star in the night sky. The white blob shimmered and changed a few times before taking on the familiar form of Ruby. The red gem flailed in the air for a moment then fell face first into the watery floor of Pearl’s room.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She scrambled to get up, losing her balance a few times as she slipped in the pool of shallow water. “Sapphire!” she shouted, reaching a hand out to a gem that wasn’t there.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Everything is fine, Ruby.” Pearl reassured, the panicked gem.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah and Sapphire is completely safe.” Amethyst added.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Ruby blinked, finally registering her surroundings. “What happened?” she asked while looking around the room, then in a much more frantic voice, “Where’s Jasper?!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Jasper is… no longer a threat.” Pearl said, choosing her words carefully.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Amethyst nodded. “She’s kind of on our side now. Twoie beat her to a pulp and she basically worships him now.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl sent her an annoyed look. “Amethyst!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“What?” she said. “It’s the truth, isn’t it?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“We were </span>
  <em>
    <span>supposed</span>
  </em>
  <span> to ease her into the news.” Pearl replied before turning to address Ruby. “But, yes everything that Amethyst said is true. Jasper now believes that Twoie is Pink Diamond and has pledged her loyalty to him.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>To Amethyst's relief, Ruby seemed to be taking the news really well, looking more confused than distressed which was a good thing because Amethyst didn’t know if she could stand to watch another gem freak out about Pink Diamond.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“So… we won?” Ruby said after taking a moment to digest the information.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, we still have other issue that need addressing like th—”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“We won.” Amethyst said, cutting Pearl off before she worked herself up again.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah! Take that Homeworld!” Ruby exclaimed, her chest puffed out in pride. Her expression quickly turned serious as she looked around. “Where’s Sapphire?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl gave Ruby the blue gemstone that was in her hand. “She’s still in her gem.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Ruby started to cry. It was sudden and unprompted. At first Amethyst thought that Ruby was just worried about Sapphire, but after carefully listening to her muffled words she was able to figure out the real reason for the red gems' distress— she missed Sapphire.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I told her that I wanted to be on my own, that I didn’t want to be Garnet. What if she never wants to be Garnet again?” she cried. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m sure that won’t happen, right Pearl?” Amethyst asked, looking to the taller gem for support. She groaned when she noticed Pearl’s shiny eyes. She forgot how emotional Pearl could be at times.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl sniffled. “Y-yes, I’m sure that everything will turn out fine. It has to. If it doesn't then… there would be no more Garnet. And... what on Earth would we do without Garnet?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Ruby had started crying again, Peals words only making her tears fall faster.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey, Pearl.” Amethyst said. “I have a great idea. Why don’t you go check on Twoie while I stay here with Ruby and the others.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl nodded wordlessly as she handed the remaining gemstone to her before heading towards the exit. Amethyst breathed a sigh of relief, glad that there was a least one less crying gem she had to deal with.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She turned and stared at the still weeping Ruby. All she had to do was cheer her up. How hard could it be?</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The door to the temple shone behind Pearl as she exited her room. A high-pitched shriek pulled her attention to the living room.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Jasper, stop!” shouted a familiar voice that Pearl recognized as belonging to Twoie.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>If Pearl had a heart it would have stopped beating then and there. She watched in horror as Steven was thrown into the air by Jasper, narrowly avoiding crashing into the ceiling beams. Jasper looked on with a sinister grin plastered on her face.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Steven!” she shouted, pulling her spear out of her gem. Steven landed in the arms of the soldier gem. “Unhand him!” She charged at Jasper, screeching to a complete stop as she ran into Twoie.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s okay, Pearl.” he said. “Everything is fine.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She sputtered. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“Fine?!”</span>
  </em>
  <span> she shrieked, attempting to push past him. “How can you say that when Jasper is…” She trailed off as she got a better look at the situation.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She nearly poofed at the sight of Steven </span>
  <em>
    <span>laughing</span>
  </em>
  <span> while in the arms of Jasper. To make matters even more confusing Jasper was actually smiling back at Steven.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Wow, you really are strong!” Steven said. “Throw me again!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>“Steven.” </span>
  </em>
  <span>Twoie said pinching the bridge of his nose, his voice was tired and Pearl got the impression that this wasn’t the first time this had happened. “Jasper, sto—”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The sound of Steven giggling as he was launched into the air cut off Twoie’s protests. Pearl looked to Twoie for an explanation to the madness that she was witnessing.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Steven and Jasper met.” he sighed. “It went well.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey, Pearl.” Steven greeted once he was back in the arms of Jasper. “Have you met Jasper?</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Her voice failed her so she simply nodded in response.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Isn’t she great?” he asked, then not waiting for an answer turned to address the orange gem. “Can you throw me again?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“As you wish, my Diamond.” Jasper said before using her strength to hurl the child into the air.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl felt around for a chair to collapse onto and, when she failed to find one, leaned on Twoie instead.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Are you okay?” Twoie asked her.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She said nothing, but nodded into his shoulder. This was going to take a while to get used to.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0018"><h2>18. The Cluster</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Peridot reveals some startling information just as everything is starting to settle down.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Twoie led a distressed Pearl over to the couch, taking care not to seat her anywhere near Lapis who still blamed the Crystal Gems for the thousands of years she spent imprisoned in a mirror. Despite his efforts, Lapis still stood up and moved away from the couch. She shot Pearl a glare before stomping off to sit near the window. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie sighed. It would take a long time for Lapis to warm up to the Crystal Gems. Still, it was nice to see her again even if she wasn’t the Lapis he knew.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Are you sure we should be letting Jasper near Steven?”  Pearl asked, her concern gaze glued to the odd pair in the kitchen.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven had dragged Jasper there after he found out that she had never eaten anything before. He now chatted happily at Jasper as he shoved boxes upon boxes of snacks in her arms, giving a small explanation as to why he liked each one.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You don’t have to worry about Jasper.” He said. “She won’t hurt Steven.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl wrung her hands together, her eyes never leaving Steven. “How can you be so sure?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jasper tried taking a bite out of one of the boxes.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“She takes her responsibilities very seriously.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl turned to him. “But what if Jasper…”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl continued to talk, but her words came out muffled and warped no matter how hard he strained his ears. His stomach churned as the room around him started to spin. He clenched his fists and willed the bout of dizziness away, but it only got worse.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A searing fiery pain coursed through his body, intensifying with each breath. An uncomfortable buzzing static filled Twoie’s head and muted the world around him. He was faintly aware of the pained cry that escaped his lips before his body tumbled onto the wooden floor.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Darkness swirled at the edges of his vision threatening to pull him into unconsciousness. The worried shouts of those around him were drowned out by the high-pitched ringing in his ears. He squeezed his eyes shut and waited for the pain to subside.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He didn’t know how long he was laying there on the floor, but based on the concerned blue eyes that greeted him when he finally did open his eyes he knew it must have been a while.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl placed a hand on his shoulder. Her voice was soft and tinged with worry. “Twoie?” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He blinked up at her, his vision cleared. “I’m fine.” he reassured before she could even ask. He moved to stand up, but failed to notice how shaky his legs were and almost fell back down. A pair of large arms caught him and helped prop his body up, allowing him to stand.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Is everything alright, my Diamond?” Jasper asked, an undercurrent of worry in her tone. Her eyes were narrowed at Pearl in accusation.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I…” he paused. Everyone had gathered around him, even Lapis eyed him with concern. She hovered close enough to see him while still remaining a good distance away from Jasper.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven had tackled his legs into a hug and was peering up at him with worried eyes. “What happened? I heard you scream and when I looked over you were…”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>What had happened to him? One moment he was fine and the next he was doubled over in pain. It wasn’t the first time it had happened either, the other times being when Garnet split and when he unbubbled Bismuth. Something was clearly wrong with him, but he plastered on a smile and ruffled Steven’s hair.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’m fine.” He avoided Pearl’s intense gaze and focused on comforting Steven. “I just have a… headache,” It wasn’t a complete lie. Twoie’s head did hurt, </span>
  <em>
    <span>a lot</span>
  </em>
  <span> actually, but he wasn’t going to tell Steven that. “I’m sure it’ll be gone in the morning.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Everyone except for Jasper gave him varying looks of disbelief. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’m fine, </span>
  <em>
    <span>really</span>
  </em>
  <span>.” He insisted. To prove his point, Twoie detangled himself from both Jasper and Steven and walked back to the couch with, thankfully, minimal wobbling from his legs. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His head stubbornly continued to throb. </span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>It was no secret that Pearl didn’t trust Jasper. She was a gem who was still loyal to Homeworld. A pink Diamond was proudly emblazoned on her uniform serving as a constant reminder of her reasons for joining them: Twoie and Steven. Jasper was unwavering in her belief that both of them were Pink Diamond and had pledged her loyalty to them.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Since then, Jasper had appointed herself as their personal bodyguard and followed them around like a shadow. It did little to ease Pearl’s fears about their safety especially since Steven had gone and formed some sort of odd friendship with her. The positive attention Jasper received from Steven only emboldened her.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Lapis had moved back to her spot near the window and Pearl understood why. Jasper was intimidating. Even now, as Steven worried over Twoie, Jasper glowered at her. Pearl had been sitting near Twoie when he collapsed and that was sufficient enough evidence for Jasper to blame her.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She placed her hand on Twoie’s forehead to check his temperature. Jasper sent her a sharp look, but she ignored it. Twoie was a little warm, but didn’t have a fever. “How are you feeling?” she asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His eyes darted to Steven. “I’m fine,” he said.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl frowned at the obvious lie.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie avoided her gaze. “It’s really late.” he turned to Steven. “You should probably go to bed.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven opened his mouth to protest, but ended up yawning instead. “But I’m not even that tired.” he said.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Twoie’s right.” she said. “You need to rest.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven pouted. “How come Twoie gets to stay up?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Twoie is going to bed too.” she said. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie frowned. “Pearl, I’m fine. I’ll sleep later. I still have things I need to do.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You’re both half human,” she said. “so you both need sleep.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie stared at her. She stared back.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His shoulder slumped in defeat. “Fine,” he said.  “I’ll go to bed </span>
  <em>
    <span>after </span>
  </em>
  <span>I check on Bismuth and the others.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl wanted to protest, but knew Twoie had already made up his mind so she just nodded instead. Steven bid everyone goodnight before leaving to his bed. Surprisingly, Jasper did not follow after him. She stayed near Twoie who was still a little pale from his earlier fainting spell.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie teetered for a moment after he stood up, a sign that he was more injured than he let on. “Jasper, watch over Peridot.” he said. “Don’t let her near the handship if she reforms.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jasper bowed and saluted. “Yes, my Diamond.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie sighed, but otherwise said nothing. Pearl followed him into the temple and tried not to think about how unfazed Twoie had been by Jasper’s behavior. It was as if he were used to being treated like a Diamond. Her mind flashed back to the outfit he arrived in. Just how much of Rose’s responsibilities did he take on in his future?</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Twoie stifled a yawn, the events of the day finally catching up to him. His muscles ached from the intense fight with Jasper and his head pounded in protest to him being awake. He probably should have listened when Pearl told him to go to bed, but he just couldn’t sleep until he made sure everyone was okay. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The trip to Pearl’s room was a short one, something he was thankful for, because his legs were still weak from his earlier incident and he didn’t think he could walk much farther without collapsing again. He could feel Pearl’s worried stare everytime he stumbled or stopped, but he stared straight ahead and ignored it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They soon arrived at the topmost fountain in the center of Pearl’s room and were greeted by the sight of Amethyst and Ruby. Amethyst turned to look at them, relief flooding her features. She patted a sullen Ruby’s back before walking over to greet them.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Good, you guys are back.” she said.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Is everything alright?” Pearl asked, glancing at Rby.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, it's just... I have no idea how to cheer up Ruby.” she said.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie grimaced, a rush of guilt washing over him. “Is this because of what happened with Garnet?” he asked.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Amethyst nodded. “I was hoping one of you guys would know what to say to her.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’ll go talk to her.” he said. “It’s my fault she’s like this so I should be the one to fix it.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He attempted to walk over to Ruby, but a hand pulled him back. Pearl gave him a worried look. “You don’t still blame yourself for what happened to Garnet, do you?” she asked.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He didn’t respond. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Dude, it’s not your fault Garnet flipped out.” Amethyst said. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“For once, Amethyst is right.” Pearl said. “You can’t control how others feel and you shouldn’t blame yourself for what happened.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The guilt weighing on him lifted a bit. “Thanks guys.” he said. “I really needed to hear that.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“No probs, dude.” Amethyst said. “You gotta stop being so hard on yourself.” She turned to Pearl. “What do you mean ‘for once’ I’m right?” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl flushed blue. “Well, what I meant to say….”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie cracked a smile and walked over to Ruby with newfound confidence. He tuned out the playful bickering of Amethyst and Pearl and focused on helping Ruby.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He cleared his throat to catch the small gems attention. “Hey, Ruby…” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Ahh!” She screamed and shuffled backwards, clutching Sapphire’s gem close to her chest. She must have been so lost in thought that she didn’t notice him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It’s okay, it’s just me,” he told the startled gem.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ruby eventually relaxed, although she still appeared a bit uncomfortable. She opened and closed her mouth a few times as she struggled to find the right words. When she finally did speak her voice was meek and hesitant. “... Sorry.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Don’t worry about it. I didn’t mean to startle you.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ruby shook her head. “No, not that. It’s about…” she hesitated. “how we, how </span>
  <em>
    <span>I</span>
  </em>
  <span> treated you as Garnet. I should’ve trusted you more.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Maybe you should have.” Twoie admitted, recalling some of Garnet’s impulsive and aggressive behavior. Ruby’s face crumpled. “</span>
  <em>
    <span>But</span>
  </em>
  <span> you were only trying to protect Steven, so I forgive you.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ruby’s shoulders sagged in relief and she looked much more comfortable than she had before. The awkwardness around them had disappeared. They sat in a comfortable silence for a while with Ruby caressing the blue gemstone in her hand.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Are you thinking about Sapphire?” he asked.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ruby sighed. “I miss her. During the fight with Jasper I kept worrying about her and when she was poofed…” she shuddered. “I don’t know what I would do If I lost her.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Does that mean you want to be Garnet again?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She shrugged. “I don’t know. I just want things to feel different from how things used to be; back when someone </span>
  <em>
    <span>told</span>
  </em>
  <span> us to be together.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Well, when this happened in my time, you decided to get married.” he smiled, recalling how beautiful the reception and the vows had been. “We threw a wedding and invited a bunch of people from beach city. There was good music, food, and dancing.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“That sounds nice.” Ruby admitted.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, it was great,” he said. “We don’t have to do the wedding right away if you don’t want to. The important thing is, it will be </span>
  <em>
    <span>your </span>
  </em>
  <span>decision to be Garnet.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ruby’s eyes sparkled, a small smile tugging at her lips. “My decision…” she stared at the blue gemstone in her hand, a thoughtful expression on her face. “Well, if I'm making my own decisions... Then, I'll decide I wanna be with Sapphire. I mean, I've gotta ask her first.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>As if on cue, the gemstone in her hand began to glow. It hovered in the air and cycled through a few appearances before settling on the familiar form of Sapphire. Ruby immediately rushed over to Sapphire and started spouting apologizes at her.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sapphire looked taken aback. “Why are you apologizing? I’m the one who should be sorry.” she said, her voice remorseful. “I should have never said those awful things to you. That we didn't matter anymore; I shouldn't have pushed you away like that. I was wrong.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I said some pretty awful things too. We were both wrong, but that stuff is in the past and I want to focus on our future.“Sapphire…” She clasped the blue gems hands in her own. “Will you marry me?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What?” she said. “Marry you?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah! This way we can be together, even when we're apart! This time, being Garnet will be our decision. What do you say?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She smiled. “Of course.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They embraced each other and erupted into fits of laughter which eventually turned into a passionate kiss. Twoie’s cheeks tinged pink at the affectionate display and he averted his gaze. From the corner of his eye, he could make out the bright light that he had come to associate with fusion. He turned back to where the couple had been a few moments earlier and was rewarded with the sight of a beaming Garnet.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl clasped her hand together in excitement. “Garnet!” she exclaimed and she ran up to greet the fusion. “You’re back!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Sup Garnet,” Amethyst said a large grin on her face. “long time no see.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It’s good to be back.” Garnet said.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They exchanged hugs and laughter until Pearl’s attention was pulled to the rainbow gemstone. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“The only one who hasn’t reformed is Bismuth.” she said.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The surge of relief he received upon learning that Bismuth hadn’t reformed was accompanied by feelings of guilt. He should want Bismuth to come back. He </span>
  <em>
    <span>did</span>
  </em>
  <span> want her to come back, but at the same time he worried about her reaction to Rose Quartz’s true identity. Would she believe him when he told her Steven was a different person even if he possessed the same gemstone? Or would it be like last time…</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>The heat from the lava that surrounded them made the lower level of the forge unbearably hot. A sheen of nervous sweat covered his forehead. He held up his shield and braced himself for Bismuth’s attack. Her blade hand slashed at his shield with enough force to knock him back onto the ground.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>The scent of burnt flesh filled the air. He ignored the searing pain radiating from his palms and pushed himself up. “W-Wait!” he cried. He shuffled backwards taking care not to walk into the lava. “I'm not my mom! I don't know what she did, but, I'm sure she didn't want to hurt you.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Bismuth’s face darkened. “It's too late.” she said, her voice was cold and had a tone of finality to it that made his heart jump. Bismuth stalked toward him, her eyes brimming with a silent fury that looked out of place on the usually cheerful gem. “I don't believe you anymore!”</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>She swung at him, the sharp blade that was once her hand sliced through the humid air of the forge. It was headed straight for him. He needed to do something, or else he was going to—</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A gentle hand rested on his shoulder. He jerked away, nearly falling over in his panic. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“... Twoie?” a concerned voice called.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Three sets of concerned eyes were on him. He immediately straightened up and tried his best to smile. His smile wavered as Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl continued to stare at him with identical expressions of concern on their faces.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Did something happen?” he asked when they remained silent.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Dude, you kinda zoned out there for a sec.” Amethyst said. “Are you okay?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, I was just thinking.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl and Garnet shared concerned looks, but thankfully didn’t press him for more information.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“About…  Bismuth?” Amethyst guessed.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He gave a small nod in response.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Where did you find Bismuth?” Pearl asked. “She’s been missing for thousands of years.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He froze. He was tempted to ignore her question and lock himself away in his room, but he had to tell them eventually. So, he took a deep breath and tried to make his explanation as short and painless as possible. “Rose bubbled her away in Lion’s mane.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The shift in mood was instantaneous.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Rose bubbled her away?!” Pearl said. “That…. can’t be right. She would never….” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Garnet frowned. “Rose said she lost track of Bismuth in the battle for the Ziggurat.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“That doesn’t make any sense.” Amethyst said. “Why would Rose bubble away one of her friends?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He stared at the floor while he talked since it was easier than looking at the hurt that marred their faces. The news that Rose had not only bubbled their friend, but also lied to them about it must have been difficult to process. “Bismuth created a weapon, the breaking point. She wanted to shatter Homeworld gems-” he ignored their shocked gasps and continued. “-in hopes of winning the war, but when she showed it to Rose… they had a disagreement and it ended with Bismuth being bubbled away.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was silent for a while after he finished his explanation. He finally built up enough courage to look up and see their reactions. Pearl’s face was marred with a myriad of emotions that Twoie could not identify. Amethyst looked upset and contemplative. Garnet was the only one who appeared unfazed, but Twoie had known Garnet his whole life and could tell when something was bothering her. He could practically feel the conflicted emotions rolling off her.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Despite her inner conflict, Garnet remained strong. “Thank you,” she told him. “For telling us the truth.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He nodded and turned to go to his room without saying another word. He was sure they had a lot to talk about and for once he didn’t have the energy to stick around and help them process everything.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Breakfast was an uncomfortable affair filled with a tension and suspicion so thick that Twoie could feel it weighing him down. He sat sandwiched between Steven and Jasper in the only available chairs in the kitchen, leaving everyone else to stand awkwardly and watch them eat. Except for Amethyst, who had decided to sit on top of the kitchen island, occasionally picking food off his plate as she ignored the sharp glares that Jasper sent her way.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl and Garnet stood closer to the fridge both of them watching Jasper like a hawk. Garnet was more subtle about it with only the occasional clenching fist or adjusting of her visor indicating her displeasure at their new ally. Pearl was the complete opposite, her face going through a kaleidoscope of emotions ranging from concern, to fear, and even anger. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>If Jasper noticed any of the looks sent her way then she didn’t seem particularly bothered by them. Her attention was singularly focused on Steven who had been especially excitable that morning since learning Garnet was back. He excitedly rambled on about his theories for the upcoming finale of Crying Breakfast Friends, only pausing to shovel more food in his mouth. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“... and that’s why the Angry Lunch Enemies will be redeemed by the end of the season.” Steven said, his words slightly muffled by the food in his mouth.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jasper nodded in agreement to Steven’s statement, but Twoie could practically hear the gears turning in her head as she struggled to process all the information thrown at her. Having a good time and relaxation weren't exactly encouraged in Homeworld, so the concept of cartoons must have been particularly confusing to Jasper.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Peridot’s back.” Amethyst said, pointing to the living room as she stole another strawberry off his plate.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The gemstone that had been still on the coffee table began to glow. A green orb of light hovered in the air. It grew in size and took on the form of Peridot. She thrashed in the air before falling flat on her face. Jasper was quick and didn’t give Peridot the opportunity to escape or even get up from the floor. She put Peridot into a headlock, ignoring the smaller gems cries of protest before casually returning to sit by Steven.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Is that Peridot?” Pearl asked, confusion in her eyes at the sight of the noticeably smaller gem.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hey, Peridot.” Twoie waved at her. “Do you want some pancakes?” he asked in an attempt to make her feel welcomed. Peridot ignored him, choosing to thrash in Jasper’s hold instead.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Oh my gosh…” Steven said, stars already forming in his eyes. “She’s so… </span>
  <em>
    <span>cute</span>
  </em>
  <span>!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie winced at the compliment, recalling just how infuriated it made the Peridot of his time. This Peridot was no different. Her eyes narrowed into a fierce glare that was directed at Steven.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Amethyst laughed “I think even </span>
  <em>
    <span>you’re</span>
  </em>
  <span> taller than her now, dude.” she said, playful nudging Steven in the ribs.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Peridot growled in displeasure, but was more focused on her missing limbs. “My limb enhancers! Where are my limb enhancers?!” She squirmed in Jasper’s firm hold desperately trying to free her head from it’s prison, but her struggles got her nowhere.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Aw, you're like an angry little slice of pie!” Steven said.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Peridot hissed. “Stop talking! I dema—”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jasper silenced her with a hard smack to the head. “You will address my Diamonds with respect.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“That </span>
  <em>
    <span>pebble</span>
  </em>
  <span> is not Pink Dia—” she stopped. Her eyes were wide and confused when she finally caught sight of Twoie. Her focus continually darted between him and Steven. “There are two of you now?!” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’m from the future.” Twoie explained. “A gem artifa—”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Ugh! Never mind, I don’t care!” Peridot said. “And you!” she sent a barrage of slaps to Jasper’s arm. “How can you just stand there and take orders from these…</span>
  <em>
    <span> these clods</span>
  </em>
  <span>! Have you forgotten about the mission? Or do I have to remind you that the cluster is due to emerge soon!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“The cluster?” Pearl repeated. “Due to emerge soon? What are you talking about?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Garnet’s voice was low and threatening. “Explain yourself.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Peridot was either oblivious to the amount of danger she was in or simply didn't care because she stuck her tongue out at Garnet. “I don’t take orders from insufferable half-formed traitors!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Garnet looked one insult away from pummeling Peridot into a cloud, and Pearl already had her spear out. Even Amethyst seemed fed up with Peridot’s hostile behavior. Twoie ignored the spectacle and focused on finishing his breakfast, tuning out the shouts of the gems around him. If events unfolded the same way as last time then they still had months before the cluster was a real threat. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The interrogation of Peridot continued for a few more minutes with each member of the Crystal Gem seeking to get information out of her, but Peridot was as stubborn as a mule. She refused to impart any of her knowledge about the cluster, taking great pleasure in calling everyone around her a clod all the while trying to escape from Jasper’s hold.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven watched the argument break out with a small frown on his face. His gaze moved to Jasper and his eyes lit up. “Aren’t you also from Homeworld, Jasper?” he asked.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yes, my Diamond.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“So, do </span>
  <em>
    <span>you </span>
  </em>
  <span>know what the cluster is?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The shouting around them died down at Steven’s question, everyone stopped what they were doing and turned to Jasper.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jasper shook her head. “I don’t.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl scoffed. “You expect us to believe that you have no knowledge about the mission you were </span>
  <em>
    <span>specifically </span>
  </em>
  <span>sent to earth for.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, that’s pretty suspicious.” Amethyst said. “Especially since we were literally just fighting like a few hours ago.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Pearls right.” Garnet said. “As a soldier gem you should have been briefed on your mission after you were given your orders.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“My</span>
  <em>
    <span> orders</span>
  </em>
  <span> were to eliminate the remaining Crystal Gems on earth.” Jasper said, a tinge of annoyance in her voice. “I was never briefed on the cluster.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I explained it to you multiple times!” Peridot said. “In great detail!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jasper shrugged. “Never listened.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Peridot sputtered. “Never… Never listened!?” the knowledge that she’d been ignored was the last straw for Peridot. She freaked out. “Ugh! You</span>
  <em>
    <span> clod</span>
  </em>
  <span>!” she scratched, slapped, and even bit at Jasper’s arm. She thrashed wildly and threw a barrage of insults at everyone.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie was almost impressed by the sheer amount of times the word ‘clods’ left her mouth. He finished up his breakfast and waited a few moments for Peridot to simmer down before speaking.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I know what the cluster is,” he announced.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Immediately, everyone’s eyes were on him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“There’s no way a pebble like you knows anything about the cluster.” Peridot said. “Its contents are classified to everyone except me.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Dude, we’ve been trying to get Peridot to tell us for like ten minutes.” Amethyst said. “How come you didn’t say anything?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He glanced at Steven. “I didn’t want you guys to worry. Plus, the cluster shouldn’t be a real threat to us.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What </span>
  <em>
    <span>is</span>
  </em>
  <span> the cluster?” Pearl asked.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It’s a geoweapon.” he said.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Peridot’s mouth fell agape. “How did </span>
  <em>
    <span>you </span>
  </em>
  <span>know that?” she returned to hitting the large gem that held her captive. “Jasper! Have you been divulging classified information to the enemy?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven tilted his head in confusion. “What’s a geoweapon?”</span>
  <span></span>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, and should we be worried?” Amethyst asked.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“The important thing is that everything is going to be fine.” he said.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Fine</span>
  </em>
  <span>?!” Peridot screeched. “When the cluster emerges we’re all going to be shattered!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Shattered?” Pearl said. “Twoie, what is she talking about?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie sighed. He had hoped to avoid going into detail about the cluster, but it seemed there was no avoiding it. “Embedded deep inside of the earth is a geoweapon that was put there by the other Diamonds. It’s made up of…” he cleared his throat and quickly moved on. “Well, the point is it's really dangerous. If it emerges then the earth will be… destroyed.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven’s eyes widened. “Destroyed?!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie rushed to reassure him. “Don’t worry, Steven. The geoweapon isn’t due to emerge for a few months.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“We only have a few months left before the earth blows up?!” Amethyst exclaimed.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“No!” he paused. “Well, yes bu–“</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven paled. “Am I going to die?!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Nobody is going to die.” he said. “Everything is goi–“</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“We’re all going to be shattered!” Peridot shrieked.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Nobody is getting shattered!” he shouted. “Or dying! Everything is going to be fine. I know how to stop the cluster, but-” he looked at Peridot. “-I’m going to need your help.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Peridot sneered at him.“Why would I ever help a clod like you?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Because you love the earth and want to do the right thing?” he asked, hopefully.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Peridot gave him a blank stare before erupting into laughter. Even though he had been expecting her to refuse, Twoie couldn’t help but feel disappointed. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He tried again. “Because you're stuck on earth and you don’t want to get shattered.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Peridot stopped laughing.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>So, there are like two more chapters left in this fic, but I might have to add more. If I don't add any new chapters then the last two will just have to be really long and because of that It might take me longer to update.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0019"><h2>19. Everything Stay</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Twoie discovers the cause of his fainting spells.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I decided to post more short chapters instead two really long ones.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Armed with nothing but a waffle iron and determination, Greg slunk around the sandy shore surrounding the beach house. He made sure to stick close to the walls of the cliff, distancing himself as much as possible from the alien warship that loomed over the shore. His legs trembled more than he would have liked, but Greg pressed onward. He was going to save his son.</p><p> </p><p>Greg had gone into panic mode the moment he woke up and realized Steven was missing. His hair had nearly fallen out when he read the note left behind by his son stating that Steven had gone back to fight against the gems who invaded Beach City. He wasted no time, hopped into his van, and headed back to Beach City with his heart pounding the entire drive there.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Now, as he approached the beach house Greg couldn’t suppress the slight tremors of fear that racked his body at the thought of having to face off against gem soldiers. His grip on the waffle iron tightened as the house came into view.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Mr. Universe?”</p><p>
  
</p><p>He shrieked and widely swung his makeshift weapon in the air. “Stay back!” he warned. “I’ve got a waffle iron!”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Are you okay?” a concerned voice from behind him asked.</p><p>
  
</p><p>He whipped around ready to fight a horde of ancient gem warriors only to be greeted by the sight of a young girl. She had long black hair, glasses framing her eyes, and a face he recognized.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Connie?”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Connie nodded but didn’t approach, warily eyeing the kitchen appliance in his hand. “I came to check on Steven.” she explained. “Is he alright?” her concerned gaze darted to the green handship.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Steven is…” he began, but stopped. What was he supposed to tell her? That her friend was fighting a bunch of dangerous aliens and he was quite possibly injured? That Greg wasn’t even sure if Steven was here or on some far off alien planet? No, that would only worry her. “Steven is… fine. You should probably go home where it's safe.” he said. “Not that it isn’t safe here!” he quickly added, a nervous laugh escaping him.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Connie’s lips stretched into a thin line. “You’re lying.” she accused. “Steven left me a message saying something about a giant space hand and that he might… be in danger.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Before Greg could even attempt to come up with a lie he was yanked off the ground. He let out a cry of surprise as he, along with Connie were suspended in the air by chains made of water. His waffle iron fell uselessly onto the sand as he struggled to free himself.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Lapis?!” Connie yelled.“What is she doing here?”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Greg followed her gaze, eyes widening at the sight of the blue gem who had stolen all of earth’s oceans not that long ago. She sat on the roof of the beach house, an almost bored expression on her face as she pulled them closer.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Sorry,” she said in a voice indicating that she wasn’t really sorry. “But no one’s allowed near the hand ship.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“I just want to see my son!” Greg told the apathetic gem.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“We weren’t trying to go on the ship.” Connie said. “We just want to make sure Steven is okay.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Lapis raised an eyebrow at the mention of Steven’s name. “You know Steven?” she asked.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Of course we do.” Connie said. “Don’t you remember us?”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Lapis gave her a blank stare.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“You almost drowned me when you stole all of the world’s water?”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“I almost drowned a <em> lot </em>of people.” Lapis said.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Lapis!” a familiar voice called.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Greg turned his gaze to the sound of the voice, his shoulders sagging in relief at the sight of Steven, unharmed and standing in front of the door to the beach house. Greg let out another yelp of surprise as Lapis flew down from the roof, pulling him and Connie along with her.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Steven,” Lapis greeted, her voice much warmer than it had been just a few moments earlier. “I was just stopping some humans from messing with the ship.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Steven paled somewhat when his gaze landed on them, but he kept a smile on his face. “Oh, thank you.” he said, awkwardly. “But can you please put my dad and Connie down.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Greg fell onto the wooden deck in front of the house immediately after Steven’s request. He let out a groan of pain when Connie landed on top of him, his body breaking her fall. Connie instantly got up and moved away from him, profusely apologizing for hurting him.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Greg rubbed at his aching back. “Don’t worry about it Connie. I’m alright.” he said, hiding the pain in his voice. “How about you? Are you hurt?” he asked.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Connie nodded. “I’m fine, Mr. Universe.” she dusted off her clothes. “Just a little shake up is all.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Steven struggled to explain what a dad was to a confused Lapis. The conversation ended with Steven gently explaining to Lapis why she couldn’t trap humans against their will before she flew up onto the roof again. Lapis did mutter a short apology to them before leaving although Greg suspected she only did so for Steven’s sake.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Sorry about that.” Steven said. “Twoie doesn’t want anyone using the ship.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Greg’s eyes darted over to the imposing green ship, his previous anxieties of alien warriors resurfacing.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Is everything… okay?” he asked. Did they win? Should he be worried? Judging by Steven’s chipper attitude Greg wanted to assume that everything had gone well, but he wouldn’t believe it until he heard it from Steven.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Steven nodded, a large smile stretching across his face. “Yeah! Everything’s great.” he gasped as if he just remembered something. His eyes twinkled with excitement. “You guys have to meet the new gems.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“New gems?” Connie asked. “Do you mean Lapis?”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“C’mon!” Steven grabbed both their hands and started tugging them toward the beach house. “Pearl and the others and talking to Bismuth, but you can still meet Jasper and Peridot.”</p><hr/><p>Rose Quartz was Pink Diamond.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Rose Quartz was Pink Diamond.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Rose Quartz was Pink Diam—</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Bismuth?” Pearl’s concerned voice pulled her back to reality. </p><p>
  
</p><p>She looked up to see three identical faces of concern. The news that the rest of the Crystal Gems had been corrupted had made her furious, especially when she caught sight of the gemstones of her closest friends suspended in the air. Her anger was suppressed by the even more shocking news that Rose Quartz was actually Pink Diamond.</p><p>
  
</p><p>The rainbow-haired gem stood up and calmly made her way over to the small pool of lava in the center of the room. She kneeled down in front of the lava, staring at the bubbling red liquid for a moment before dunking her entire head in and screaming.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Rose Quartz was Pink Diamond! It all made sense now. How had she not realized it sooner? Rose had been far stronger than any typical Quartz soldier and she alone had the power to heal cracked gems. Of course she was a Diamond. Bismuth let out one last shout into the depths of the lava before pulling her head out.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Are you… okay?” Pearl asked, her voice tinged with anxiety.</p><p>
  
</p><p>She let out a tired sigh as she submerged her legs in lava, the warm liquid soothing her nerves. “I will be,” she answered honestly. A small chuckle escaped her. Rose’s reaction to the Breaking Point suddenly made a lot more sense.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“What matters now is that we’re all together again.” Garnet said.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Bismuth nodded in agreement. “Rose was shattered so it’s not like it even matters anymore.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>The three gems exchanged confused glances.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Dude, what are you talking about?” Amethyst said. “Rose wasn’t shattered.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“What do you mean?” She asked. “Twoie told me Rose was gone.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Rose<em> is </em> gone,” Garnet said. “but she wasn’t shattered. She gave up her physical form in order to have a human child in the form of Steven.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Yeah and since Twoie is from the future they both have her gem.” Amethyst added.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Bismuth tensed at the news.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Pearl placed a hand on her shoulder. “It's not always easy to understand Rose's choices... But we have to stand behind them.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Bismuth remained silent.</p><hr/><p>Connie Maheswaran had always wanted to meet aliens. When she was a child she imagined them as super intelligent beings, capable of near magical feats due to their advanced technology. She thought they would be cool, calculating, and articulate. She certainly hadn’t expected them to be this… childish.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Jasper, the imposing gem that towered over her, was the first gem that Steven had wanted to introduce her to. Connie’s first impression was that Jasper was a staunch and relentless warrior, but that was massively undercut by the bits of pancake and syrup that stained her otherwise intimidating face. </p><p>
  
</p><p>Jasper was slumped over in a chair, her distraught face resting on the kitchen island. According to Steven, Amethyst had challenged Jasper to an eating competition and Jasper had immediately accepted without even knowing how to eat. Amethyst had, of course, won and Jasper had been sulking ever since.</p><p>
  
</p><p>It was an odd sight for sure, seeing someone nearly four times her size being so… pouty. Jasper sullen demeanor did, at the very least, make her more approachable. Connie only hesitated slightly when Steven tugged her over to the large gem.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“It’s okay, Jasper.” Steven consoled as he patted Jasper’s back in a comforting way. “I’m not disappointed in you. I don’t think I’ve ever seen <em> anyone </em> eat more than Amethyst.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Jasper’s forlorn expression lifted slightly at his words, her posture straightened when she caught sight Connie. Jasper narrowed her eyes at her and Connie suddenly wished Jasper was still sulking. Connie stiffened under her scrutinizing gaze and inched closer to Steven. Steven must have noticed because he perked up, happily looking between the two of them and seemingly oblivious to the sharp look that Jasper was sending her way.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Steven cleared his throat. “Jasper, this is my best friend Connie.” He pulled her into a side hug. Connie’s face warmed at the action but she didn’t pull away. “Connie, this is Jasper. She’s the one who came in the hand ship.” he explained.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Um, hello.” Connie greeted nervously, sending a small wave in her direction. “It’s nice to meet you.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Jasper merely grunted in reply, the suspicion in her eyes slowing leaving.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“She doesn’t talk much.” Steven explained. “But she’s really nice once you get to know her.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Connie nodded wordlessly, but was glad when Steven pulled her into the living and away from Jasper. She could hear Mr. Universe and Twoie’s quiet conversation in Steven’s bedroom. From the concerned glances that Mr. Universe sent towards the new gems Connie could only assume they were discussing their safety. Steven sent them a small wave, causing some of the worry in Mr. Universe’s face to leave.</p><p>
  
</p><p>The next gem she was introduced to was more in line with what Connie expected an alien to look like with her green skin and smaller size. She was considerably shorter than Jasper. Connie suspected that even <em> she </em> was taller than the green gem, though it was hard to tell given that she was seated on the couch.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“That’s Peridot.” Steven said. “She’s—”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“What do <em> you </em> want pebble?” Peridot spat, her voice dripping with annoyance. “I already agreed to help construct the drill. What more do you want from me?”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Steven smiled, undeterred by her hostile demeanor. “I just wanted to introduce you to my friend. Her name is Conn—”</p><p>
  
</p><p>A loud thud interrupted Steven. Connie turned to the noise and gaped at the sight of an unconscious Twoie. His body was limp and unmoving in Mr. Universe’s worried hold. His worried shouting caught the attention of Jasper who wasted no time and dashed over to the scene, Steven quickly following after her.</p><p>
  
</p><p>By the time Connie snapped out of her shock and raced up the stairs to Steven’s bedroom Twoie was already standing up. His body was leaned against Jasper as he reassured everyone that he was fine, but Connie didn’t believe him and judging by the grim expressions on everyone’s face she wasn’t alone. </p><p>
  
</p><p>Still, Twoie continued to brush off the incident. “I’m fine.” he said, swaying a bit as he struggled to stand on his own. He turned toward them, a strained smile on his pale face. “Why don’t you two go explore the ship?” he said gesturing toward the green space ship that was still parked in front of the house.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Connie opened her mouth to protest, but Twoie didn’t give her the chance to respond. He turned to Jasper who was watching Twoie carefully.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Jasper, can you give them a tour of the ship?” he asked, though it sounded more like an order.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Before Connie could process what was happening, she was already being carried off the ship along with a worried Steven.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Make sure they stay safe and don’t contact anyone from Homeworld.” Twoie said right as they were leaving the house.</p><hr/><p>Greg was good at knowing when someone was lying to him and Twoie was definitely lying. His face was chalk white and his forehead was drenched in sweat, but he continued to insist that he was fine even going as far to send the children away so they wouldn’t ask him any questions.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Greg forced him to take a seat on the bed. </p><p>
  
</p><p>“I’m fine, dad.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“You just collapsed!” He shouted, lowering his voice when he noticed Twoie wincing and clutching at his head. “You’re not fine. Is there anything I can do to help?”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Twoie didn’t respond. His eyes were glued to the wooden floor.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Greg frowned. Steven was never this stubborn when it came to asking for help. Greg supposed it was just another difference that he had to get used to.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Should I get one of the gems?” he asked, thinking Twoie would be more comfortable speaking to them about his problems.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“No!” Twoie said a bit too loudly. “No, don’t get the gems. I’ll only cause them worry again.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Again?” Greg repeated. “Has this happened before?”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Twoie’s silence was the only answer he needed before he made up his mind. Greg stood from the bed and marched over to the temple door, ignoring Twoie’s weak protests. If this was gem related then the gems might know how to help.</p><p>
  
</p><p>He pulled back his fist and knocked on the temple door. “Pearl? Amethyst? Garnet?” he called, hoping one the gems would hear him and appear. He had no way of entering the temple otherwise and he doubted Twoie would help him.</p><p>
  
</p><p>He knocked a few more times, stopping when a weak hand held back his fist. Twoie had followed him and was now trying to tug him away from the temple door. He wasn’t having much success, all of Twoie’s strength seemed to have left him and he only succeeded at feebly gripping at Greg’s shirt.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Don’t tell the ge—”</p><p>
  
</p><p>The door the temple shone brightly. Greg stepped backwards, pulling Twoie along with him as Pearl appeared in front of the door.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Twoie wiped the sweat from his brow and plastered on a fake grin. “Pearl! Hey!” he greeted, nervously. “So, How’s Bismuth?”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Pearl quirked an eyebrow at his odd behavior. “Is everything alright?” she asked. “Why was Greg knocking on the door?”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“It’s Twoie.” Greg began, sending the teen a stern look when he opened his mouth to interrupt him. Twoie crossed his arms and looked away. “He collapsed and—”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Again?” Pearl asked, worry lacing her tone. She approached Twoie and pressed the back of her hand to his forehead. “You’re burning up.” she noted.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Twoie sighed. “I’m fin—”<br/><br/></p><p>“You’re not fine.” Greg and Pearl said in unison.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Greg guided Twoie over the couch, ignoring the angry grumbles of Peridot as she moved to the other end of the couch. Thankful, Twoie was too tired to resist and only half heartedly protested.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“You’re fainting spells are only getting worse.” Pearl said. “Have you been eating and sleeping?” she asked.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Yeah, but I don’t think that has anything to do with it.” Twoie said. He rubbed at his temples. “I think I’m just a little stressed.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Maybe…” Pearl hesitated. “I think we should send you back to your time.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“What?!” Twoie exclaimed. “But we still have to take care of the cluster and after that I need to figure out how to deal with the Dia—”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“I appreciate you trying to help,” Pearl said. “but you’ve been pushing yourself too hard. You’ve already helped us a lot with Jasper and Peridot. I’m sure we can handle whatever the future throws at us.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Pearl’s right.” Greg said. “You shouldn’t stay just because you feel obligated to help.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“But the artifact that brought me here is broken.” Twoie said.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“That’s true and I was struggling to fix it on my own, but…” Pearl glanced at a grumpy Peridot. “We do know someone else who may be able to help.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Greg wished he could help, but realized he was way out of his depth. He barely knew how to repair his van so he doubted he would be of any use when it came to repairing something as complicated as a time machine. </p><p>
  
</p><p>He gave Twoie’s shoulder a reassuring squeeze before standing to leave. “I’ll let everyone one know that it’s safe to come back to Beach City.” he said. “I’ll be by the carwash if you need me.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Twoie nodded. “Don’t worry about me dad. I’ll be fine.”</p><hr/><p>Pearl handed the artifact over to a reluctant Peridot who immediately raised an eyebrow as she turned the object over in her hand. Her lips pressed themselves into a thin line and the displeasure on her face only grew the longer she stared at the artifact. Twoie’s heartbeat picked up slightly as he waited for Peridot to say something. It wasn’t like Peridot to be so quiet.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Peridot’s gaze briefly flickered over to him before returning to the time artifact.</p><p>
  
</p><p>It was Pearl who broke the silence, some impatience leaking into her tone. “Are you able to repair it?” she asked.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Peridot’s eyes darted over to him again, quickly returning to the artifact before they could make eye contact. “It’s extremely old,” Peridot began. “Even by Era 1 standards. That being said, I <em> should </em>be able to repair it fairly quickly provided I make some minor adjustments to modernize its antiquated hardware, but…” Peridot paused, nervous energy rolled off of her in waves.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“But?” Twoie pressed, ignoring the knot of worry in his stomach. Peridot never hesitated when it came to technology. </p><p>
  
</p><p>“Well…” Peridot said. “We should hurry if… I should be able to get it functioning within a week if construction on the drill is put out on hold.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Put construction of the drill on hold?” Pearl said, her tone suggesting she wasn’t particularly fond of that idea.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“The artifact can wait.” Twoie said. “We should focus on the cluster first.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Peridot gnawed on her bottom lip, a conflicted expression plastered on her face. “If we wait any longer then it may be too late.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Too late?” Pearl repeated, her eyes narrowing slightly. “For what?”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Peridot’s eyes widened ever so slightly before returning to normal. “You don’t know.” She said.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Twoie frowned. “Don’t know what?”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Tell me, have you made any… significant changes to the past?” Peridot asked, ignoring his question.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Twoie bit on the inside of his cheek. Peridot’s mere presence could be considered a significant change. She should be hiding out on earth and trying to contact Homeworld not helping them with the cluster. That wasn’t supposed to happen for months. Plus, there was Jasper, Lapis, and Bismuth who all joined the Crystal Gems at later dates. Heck, the Jasper in his time was still as grumpy as ever, only really leaving her base in the woods to go collect more rocks to train with.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Yeah, I guess I have made some changes.” he said. “Is that… bad?”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“The Pyramids of Observation-” she gestured to the artifact in her hand. “-was never intended to alter the past. It was originally created for elite gems to view significant events in gem history, but the project was abandoned due to certain… issues.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Twoie recalled how strange the ruins he found the artifact in were. Random objects would appear and disappear seemingly at random. The layout of ruins itself was constantly changing making it difficult to locate the artifact. However, none of this explained Peridot’s nervous behavior.</p><p>
  
</p><p>She went on and on about the history of the artifact, spouting excerpts from old log dates she had read up on and generally avoided the topic of the ‘issues’ that the artifact seemed to have. While this wasn’t the Peridot that Twoie was familiar with, she still had the same nervous habits and obvious tells that let him know she was hiding something.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Peridot continued, “The users of the artifact who stayed in the past for extended periods of time would experience immense pain, flashes of heat, and spontaneous dissipation of their physical forms. These side effects were usually the result of gems unintentionally altering the past.”<br/><br/></p><p>Oh. That would certainly explain the bouts of pain and disorientation that were becoming more frequent. Thankfully, he was half human so he couldn’t poof but he could still feel pain.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Pearl placed a hand on his shoulder. “You’re fainting spells must be the result of the artifact.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“But I should be fine once I return to my time, right?” he asked.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Peridot was silent for a moment. “Maybe,” she said. “But you have already made changes to the past. You’re a time anomaly who, if the changes you’ve made are drastic enough, comes from a future that may not exist any more. The pain you’ve been experiencing is likely the result of the timeline attempting to… erase you from existence.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Beside him, Pearl gasped. “What do you mean ‘erase from existence’?! Why didn’t you say anything sooner?!”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“I thought you knew! One of the fusion’s components is a Sapphire. Surely, she must have noticed the instability of the future….”</p><p> </p><p>The duo continued to argue but Twoie had stopped listening. He was still reeling from Peridot’s earlier words. His entire existence was going to be erased. He was going to die.</p><hr/><p>The night sky was adorned with beautiful stars, each of which twinkled and shone brightly. The sea of stars above her were too numerous to count, but Spinel tried to anyway. It gave her something to do while she waited. She was very good at waiting.</p><p>
  
</p><p>She turned her gaze downward to a patch of dried grass near her feet, frowning at its brown and lifeless appearance. She used to admire the vibrant flowers that surrounded her, but they had not bloomed for hundreds of years. Hopefully, that too would change when Pink returned.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Pink…</p><p>
  
</p><p>Spinel missed Pink. It had been so long since they last played together and if she were being completely honest with herself Spinel was getting tired of waiting, but she didn’t dare move. She had promised Pink she would not move. </p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em> Here in the garden </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Let's play a game </em>
</p><p>
  <em> I'll show you how it's done </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Here in the garden </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Stand very still </em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>What kind of best friend would she be if she broke her promise? No, Spinel would most definitely not break her promise. Pink would return any moment now and they would go back to playing games in the garden just like they used to. She just needed to be patient.</p><p>
  
</p><p>The familiar chime of a warp pad activating pierced the silence of the garden, but Spinel’s gaze remained fixed on the ground as she busied herself with counting blades of grass. She thought she had heard the warp pad activate many times before only to be met with disappointment when she looked up and found nothing.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Still, she couldn’t stop the wave of hope that washed over her at the noise. She longed to hear Pink’s warm voice as she announced her return. She longed to hear anything other than the deafening silence that she’d been listening to for the past 6,000 years.</p><p>
  
</p><p>The faint sound of footsteps caused her to stop counting. Her eyes remained glued to the ground. The footsteps were getting closer, rising in volume in tandem with her hope. She forced her gaze upward and was disappointed by the sight of a human.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Despite her discontentment at the human not being Pink, Spinel was somewhat happy at the human’s presence. It meant, at the very least, that the warp pad was still functional and that Pink would have no trouble returning to her.</p><p>
  
</p><p>The human stopped once he reached her and stared. Spinel stared back.</p><p>
  
</p><p>The smile he gave her was shaky and strained like the slightest breeze would cause it to crumble. He opened his mouth before abruptly closing it a moment later. This continued for a while as the human struggled to find the words to say.</p><p>
  
</p><p>When he finally did speak his voice was soft and gentle. “Spinel…”</p><p>
  
</p><p>She tilted her head in response.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“I… I’m sorry.” he said. “I should have come sooner, but I… I’m sorry.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>She merely blinked in response. Had this human confused her for another Spinel? No, that couldn’t be right. She was made especially for Pink Diamond. There was no way anyone, not even a human, could mistake her for an ordinary Spinel.</p><p>
  
</p><p>He extended his arm out and offered her his hand. “C’mon, let’s get you out of here.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“I can’t leave.” she said, surprising herself by speaking. When was the last time she had heard the sound of her own voice?  </p><p>
  
</p><p>His already weak smile came crashing down at her words. Something flitted across the surface of his brown eyes, an emotion that Spinel failed to recognize.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Yes, you can,” he insisted.</p><p>
  
</p><p>She shook her head in disagreement. “I promised Pink I would stay until she came back.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>His fists shook at his sides and his jaw clenched. Had she angered him by rejecting his offer? No, his eyes were too shiny and lacked any malice.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“She’s not coming back, Spinel.” he said after a beat of silence.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“She will.” she immediately replied. Pink would never forget about her, they were best friends. “She promised.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>He made a noise that was half way between a scoff and a laugh. “Yeah, well, she was a liar.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>She didn’t respond. Clearly, this human had no idea what he was talking about. He’d probably never even seen Pink, let alone talked to her because if he did then he wouldn’t be calling her a liar. Pink would never break her promise.</p><p>
  
</p><p>The human sighed. “She’s gone, Spinel. She is gone and she’s never coming back.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Her eyes widened, body trembling as his words sent her reeling. “No,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper. “You’re lying. Pink isn’t… She would never…”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“I’m sorry.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>She squeezed her eyes shut, memories of her time spent with Pink flashing before her. “She promised she would come back.” She could almost hear Pink’s melodic laughter. She opened her eyes, blinking away tears that threatened to fall. “She has to come back.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“You don’t have to wait here anymore.” he offered her his hand again. “You deserve a better friend.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>She shook her head. “I already have a friend.” she said. “She’ll be here soon, very soon. I can feel it.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>His hand fell back to his side. He was silent for a moment, his glistening eyes were contemplative. “Do you mind if I wait here with you?” he asked.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Did she mind? No, she didn’t. The thought of having company after so many years of being alone was… nice. </p><p>
  
</p><p>“Okay.” she said. “You can stay.”</p><p> </p><p>He flashed her a grin and for the first time in centuries, Spinel could feel her lips quirk up into a ghost of a smile.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0020"><h2>20. The Tour</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Steven and Connie get a tour of the hand ship while Twoie convinces Spinel to go back to earth with him.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>The harsh words being thrown around became garbled and meaningless to Twoie’s ears as he struggled to breath properly. Had breathing always been this difficult? His lungs cried out for oxygen and his head buzzed with a disorienting static. A glance at his hands confirmed what he already knew. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>They were shaking. Badly.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He pushed himself off the couch, brushing off Pearl’s worried hands and used what little strength he had to make a dash for the warp pad. He collapsed onto his knees as soon as he reached it.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Twoie?!” Pearl cried. “Where are you going?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl was fast approaching and would force him to rest, but Twoie knew he didn’t have much time left. He still had so much he needed to fix. He couldn’t just sit around and wait for himself to vanish into non existence. The door to the temple opened behind him and the rest of the gems spilled out into the living room, their light-hearted chatter only made his urgency increase.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl would no doubt reveal what Peridot had told them and Twoie didn’t think he could stomach to listen to that explanation twice. He couldn’t bear to see the pity in their eyes when they learned of his eventual demise. Without thinking, he slammed his fists against the warp pad, silently pleading for it to take him anywhere other than where he was.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>His wish was granted a second later when the warp pad glowed brightly before activating and sending him away from the beach house. The last thing he saw was Pearl’s worried face and outstretched hand as she pleaded for him to stay. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He knew exactly where he ended up the moment the light from the warp pad disappeared. He had been here before back when he was desperately trying to stop an injector from destroying the earth. His eyes were drawn to the center of the garden where a familiar figure stood patiently: Spinel.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie slowly rose from the warp pad and began his journey down the steps and to Spinel, his legs wobbling the whole way. While he hadn’t been consciously thinking about Spinel he was still glad that he ended up in the garden. He still had time and he intended to use it to help as much as he could.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He stopped when he reached Spinel and tried to give her the biggest smile he could muster, but he knew without even having to look that he must have been failing miserably. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Spinel…”</span>
</p>
<hr/>
<p>
  <span>The inside of the ship was as spectacular as the outside with strange and complex technology everywhere Steven looked. He just wished he could enjoy it more, but Twoie’s sudden fainting was weighing on his mind. He knew that Twoie wasn’t fine like he claimed to be, but had no idea how to get the truth from him. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Why would you want a tour of the handship?” Lapis asked him as she eyed everything around her with displeasure. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Lapis had nearly attacked Jasper when she saw her leading Steven and Connie inside of the ship, but had quickly backed off once he had explained the situation to her and decided to tag along with them. Now, they were all waiting as Jasper attempted to open the door to the main control room of the ship. Apparently, Peridot had been in charge of steering the ship and Jasper was stumped as to how to open the door.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven took a seat on the cool floor, leaning his back against the wall before answering. “Twoie thought it would be a good idea.” he said.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, but he was really just finding an excuse to get us out of the house.” Connie added. “I’m worried about him. He looked really pale when we left.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Lapis’ lips pressed themselves into a thin line. “Is something wrong with Twoie?” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m not sure.” Steven said. “Twoie told us that he was fine, but… ”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Before the conversation could continue any further the doors to the main control room of the ship slid open. Steven stood as Jasper walked back over to them with a triumphant look on her face.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ve opened the door, my Diamond.” Jasper saluted him and to Steven’s surprise she glared at both Connie and Lapis. “Show some respect.” she growled out as she emphasized the salute she was making.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven was taken aback by her sudden change in demeanor and by the looks of it so was Connie. She gave him a questioning stare to which Steven could only respond to with a small shrug. He had never seen Jasper act so aggressively before and had no idea what to do. The only one who didn’t seem surprised by the gem's behavior was Lapis who merely glared back at the large gem.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Their stare off continued for a while longer until Lapis huffed in annoyance and turned away from Jasper who grinned, satisfied with her victory. Lapis rubbed at her arm nervously for a moment before moving to stand in front of him and bowing low, her arms in the Diamond salute.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“My Diamond.” Lapis said, glancing up uncertainty at him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Diamond?” Connie repeated, her brows furrowed in confusion.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven blinked. Whatever he had been expecting Lapis to do </span>
  <em>
    <span>that</span>
  </em>
  <span> definitely wasn’t it, but it did help explain Jasper’s odd behavior. If what Pearl and Twoie had told him was true then not only did the Diamonds have great authority over all of gemkind, but they also were treated with the utmost respect.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“You don’t have to bow to me.” he said. “Or salute me.” he hastily added when he noticed Jasper narrowing her eyes at Connie who was doing neither. “We’re all friends here so just call me Steven.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Lapis straightened up and dropped the salute. She sent Jasper a smug look before walking ahead of the group and into the main control room. Jasper was quick to follow after her, a scowl plastered on her face.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“What was that about?” Connie asked.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven placed a hand over his shirt where his gem rested. “It’s because my mom was a Diamond.” he revealed.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Other than quirking an eyebrow up Connie didn’t react to his statement, not that Steven was expecting her to. Connie was a human who shouldn’t have any knowledge about Homeworld or the Diamonds.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“They’re a really big deal on Homeworld, the planet where the gems come from.” he explained before she could ask. “They’re basically the leaders of all gems.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“But I thought your mom was a Quartz?” she asked.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I thought so too…” he said, frowning. “But it turns out she was a Diamond the whole time and just never told anybody.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Finding out that his mom was a liar was honestly more of a shock to Steven than the revelation that she was actually Pink Diamond. His whole life he had been fed stories about how much of a wonderful, caring, and honest person she was and Steven constantly lived with the fear of never living up to her memory. Realizing that his mom wasn’t as perfect as everybody claimed she was left Steven feeling more than a bit unsettled.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Connie placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. “I’m sure she had a good reason for hiding the truth.” she said. “Maybe she didn’t want you to deal with the responsibilities of being a leader.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, maybe…” he said, choosing to stay silent on the issue of the Diamonds. Connie still didn’t know about the cluster or about how the Diamonds corrupted most of the gems on earth, and Steven really didn’t want to think about that now.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Thankfully, Connie seemed to sense this and pulled him along toward the direction of the control room instead of asking him any more questions. “C’mon,” she playfully nudged him in the shoulder. “I’ve been dying to check out this spaceship.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>A genuine smile stretched across his face at her excitement. “Race you there.” he said.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Connie grinned. “You’re on!” she said before barreling ahead of him.</span>
</p>
<hr/>
<p>
  <span>The garden was falling apart. There were more weeds than flowers, the pillars that littered the area were crumbling, and the fountain at the center of it all had long since dried up. It was a depressing sight, beaten only by the haggard expression that Spinel wore as she waited for someone who would never come.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie had taken a seat on a small patch of grass near Spinel after she had agreed to let him stay, too weak to stand for much longer.  He didn’t say much at first, waiting to see if Spinel would change her mind and leave with him, but she remained still as a statue. It was clear that she still believed Pink Diamond would be coming back.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>In an effort to pass the time he invited her to play a game.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Her eyes lit up in excitement. “A game?” she said. “What kind of game?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Hmm…” he racked his mind for game ideas “I know!” he said, after a while. “We can play I-Spy.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Spinel was, surprisingly, unfamiliar with the game and Twoie had to explain it to her. She quickly caught on and seemed to be enjoying the game. After all, she had literally been doing nothing but waiting for several thousands of years. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie stroked his chin as he tried to come up with something harder to guess. It had taken Spinel less than a second to figure out the previous items he had picked. “I spy with my little eye something… pink.” he said.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“The fountain.” Spinel immediately guessed.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He grinned, happy to have stumped her for once. “No.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She paused and thought for a moment. “The pillars?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He shook his head. “Nope, but good guess.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She snapped her fingers, eyes lighting up in realization. She pointed at herself. “Is it me?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He chuckled. “Yeah, you got it!” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Spinel clasped her hand together in excitement, a small giggle escaping her as she relished in her victory. Twoie’s grin grew wider at the sight of the happy gem. He worried telling her about Pink’s demise would send her spiralling into a fit of rage and vengeance similar to what had happened in his time, but he couldn’t sense an ounce of hostility coming from this Spinel.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie invited Spinel to play more games as he thought of a way to broach the sensitive subject of Pink Diamond’s death. They played tic tac toe using some twigs he had found in the garden, then later they used those twigs to draw in the dirt and play pictionary, Twoie even taught her how to play rock paper scissors.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>After a while of this, Twoie struggled to come up with games they could play while remaining stationary. Spinel was adamant about not leaving her spot until Pink Diamond returned and Twoie didn’t have much energy to play anything else. Still, he knew that he couldn’t stay in the garden for much longer. Pearl was probably worried sick about him and he did need to eat eventually so he had to convince Spinel to come with him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He mustered up some courage before suggesting their next game. “Do you want to play tag?” he asked in as casual a way as possible.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Spinel’s initial reaction to the suggestion was one of eagerness and joy, but that quickly died down as she stared at her feet which were ensnared by thousand year old vines and moss. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I can’t play that game.” Spinel said, regretfully. Her gaze darted over to the warp pad and Twoie knew without having to ask that Spinel was thinking of Pink Diamond.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Why not?” he asked, fully aware of the reason.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Spinel’s gaze fell to the ground. The smile that she wore throughout all their games had vanished into a frown.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m waiting for a friend.” she said.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“For Pink Diamond, right?” he asked, his gaze briefly darting to the pink gemstone hidden under his shirt. For a moment he contemplated telling her that he was Pink Diamond, but he shot the idea down as quickly as it had arrived. Spinel deserved to make her own choice for once in her life and not just listen to whatever Pink Diamond wanted her to do.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Spinel nodded. “I promised I would stand very still until she returned.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“She’s not coming back, Spinel.” he said. “She’s gone.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Just like the last time Twoie had tried to break the news to her, Spinel shook her head in denial of his words. “She’ll be back soon.” she said. “You’ll see.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“How soon is soon?” he asked, knowing Spinel wouldn’t be able to give him a concrete answer. He took no pleasure in upsetting her, but refused to let her keep standing by herself in the ruins of a once beautiful garden.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Spinel’s frown deepened at his question. She opened her mouth before closing it and refusing to answer.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Spinel?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>There was a beat of silence. “She’ll be back soon.” Spinel repeated. “She promised.” she added, though Twoie suspected those words were more for her own benefit than for his.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“So, she’ll be back in an hour?” he asked, knowing that wouldn’t be the case.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Spinel went silent, her eyes glued to a patch of dead grass like it was the most interesting thing in the world.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“A day?” he pressed. “A week? A month? A year?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t…” Spinel hesitated, her mask of certainty beginning to crack. “... soon.” she said with much less confidence than usual.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“How long </span>
  <em>
    <span>have </span>
  </em>
  <span>you been waiting here, Spinel?” he asked.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Silence was her only response, but it didn’t matter because Twoie already knew the answer. Spinel had been waiting for nearly 6,000 lonely and quiet years.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“She’s not coming back for me…” Spinel said in realization, her voice barely above a whisper.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Her expression crumbled as tears pricked the corner of her wide and distraught eyes. She had finally accepted Pink Diamond's abandonment of her and was not handling it well.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Not only did Twoie have to deal with the emotional guilt of upsetting Spinel, but he also had to contend with the physical pain that radiated from his body. She wasn’t supposed to leave the garden for several years and the timeline seemed very upset with his interference, sending him wave after wave of agonizing pain.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He took steadying breaths as he waited for the pain to subside to a tolerable level before approaching Spinel who had crumpled onto the ground and began to weep.</span>
</p>
<hr/>
<p>
  <span> The main control room of the spaceship was as fantastical as Connie hoped it would be. In the center and at the end of the room was the most advanced piece of technology that she had ever seen. A large, light-projected monitor displayed a jumble of various symbols and images which were completely foreign to her.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“How do you use this thing?” Connie asked as she took a seat in front of the large console under the monitor.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The console resembled a desk and was made of some sort of alien metal that reminded Connie of marble. She ran her hand over the cool, flat surface in search of buttons or some sort of control panel but found nothing.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Maybe it’s voice activated?” Steven suggested from beside her. “Ship, turn on.” he said.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Connie stared at the monitor, waiting for it to change but to her disappointment nothing happened.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven frowned at his failed attempt before turning toward Jasper who was standing a few steps behind him. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Jasper, do you know how to use this?” He asked as he pointed at the console.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The large gem walked over to the console and made a few gestures which caused the monitor to change to a map-like screen. Symbols that Connie speculated represented planets dotted the screen, each with a small blurb of information that she could not read.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Woah,” Connie said, leaning forward in her chair to get a better view of the screen. “It kind of looks like a map.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“A star map,” Jasper confirmed. She made a few more gestures and the monitor zoomed in on a particular dot. “Homeworld.” she said.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“So, that’s Homeworld…” Steven said, his eyes glued to the screen.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The planet was blindingly bright and, to her surprise, seemed to be divided completely in half with chunks of rock aimlessly floating in its orbit. Despite this Connie had to admit the planet was oddly beautiful.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Behind her Lapis let out a large sigh before looking away from the screen and walking off to another corner of the room.</span>
</p>
<hr/>
<p>
  <span>If Amethyst were physically capable of getting a headache she would have had a massive one right then. Just when the situation with the cluster seemed to be getting under control another problem sprung up, except this time Amethyst didn’t have the faintest idea of what that problem was.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>After Twoie’s strange and abrupt disappearance, Pearl had gathered everybody in the living room to discuss an issue of ‘grave importance’ only to then go on about a bunch of technical nonsense that made virtually zero sense to her. To make matters worse, Peridot had added onto Pearl’s nonsense with some of her own when she started spouting facts about ancient gem history that didn’t interest Amethyst in the slightest.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Thankfully, Pearl did eventually bring the conversation back on topic, although Amethyst still struggled to understand what exactly that topic was. From what she gathered, the issue seemed to be focused on the gem artifact that Twoie used to travel to the past which would explain Twoie’s absence, but failed to explain Pearl’s grief stricken expression.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Throughout her explanation Pearl would frequently clutch her hands to her chest (a gesture Amethyst recognized as one Pearl did when upset) and she would even hear the occasional sniffle from her. All of which were signs that Pearl wanted to cry, but Amethyst couldn’t figure out why. With Twoie on their side they had not only stopped Homeworld, but had actually managed to get Jasper as an ally. As far as she was concerned everything was going great, so then why did Pearl look so sad?</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Annoyingly, it seemed like she was alone in her confusion. Garnet’s face had become an unreadable stone wall as she digested the information that was given to her, but Amethyst could tell by her clenched jaw and stiff posture that she was upset. Heck, even Bismuth seemed to understand what was going on and she had literally been stuck in her gem for thousands of years.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Amethyst bit back a groan of annoyance when Peridot began to speak again. She quickly cut her off before she could continue with her mini history lesson.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“And all of this means…” she said.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Peridot huffed at the interruption before her face turned serious once more. “In short, failure to restore the timeline to its original course will undoubtedly result in the taller organics… expunction.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Amethyst stared at her for a full second before turning to Pearl. “And all of this means…” she repeated.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl’s gaze darted over to the warp pad where Twoie had been before he ran off. She wrung her hands together as she spoke. “If Twoie does not return to his time soon then he will be… erased from existence.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Oh. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Oh. </span>
  </em>
  <span> Like a puzzle everything clicked into place, leaving Amethyst with an horrible mental image of Twoie disintegrating in front of her. For once, Amethyst was grateful that she didn’t have a real human stomach because if she did it would no doubt be churning. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“So, we just need to send him back and he’ll be fine, right?” she asked.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>There was no way Twoie was actually going to die, right? She would have laughed at the ridiculousness of the idea if it weren’t for Pearl’s shiny eyes and grim expression. There was something else she wasn’t telling them and judging by the faces of everybody around her they had all figured it out.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Garnet had crossed her arms and turned away from Pearl, her gaze glued to a random spot on the wall. Bismuth wore a small frown and her eyes looked far away and contemplative. Even Peridot was uneasy as she fiddled with the artifact in her hands, avoiding eye contact with her at all costs.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Twoie’s going to be fine right, Pearl?” she asked after failing to get a response.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl refused to meet her gaze. “Ideally, if we send him back as soon as possible he should be fine, but…”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“But, what?” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It was Garnet who answered. “Twoie has altered the past drastically.” she adjusted her visor. “The future is in constant flux due to his changes which is why I have been struggling with my future vision. His original future may not exist anymore.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Amethyst frowned as realization dawned upon her. If Twoie’s past no longer existed then what would happen to him if they tried to send him back? But they couldn’t keep him in the past forever either since, if Peridot were to be believed, staying in the past would only lead to Twoie’s eventually death.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Before she could ruminate on the helplessness of the situation any longer, the subtle shaking of the ground pulled her attention towards the window and at the only thing capable of causing such a disturbance. The hand ship jerked forward, the floor rumbling with its movements before going still.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Does anybody know where Steven is?” Amethyst asked, suddenly aware of his absence.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Silence was the only answer she received, but everybody’s gaze had darted over to the green hand ship. The next minute was a hectic blur as they (mostly Pearl) panicked about Steven’s well being and the sudden movement from the ship. It was quickly agreed that Bismuth would stay behind to watch Peridot and wait for Twoie while Amethyst, along with Garnet and Pearl, went to investigate the ship.</span>
</p>
<hr/>
<p>
  <span>Steven walked over to the corner where Lapis stood. It was clear from her expression that something had upset her.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Is everything okay?” he asked.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Lapis hugged herself and turned away. “It’s nothing,” she said. “Don’t worry about it.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven glanced at Jasper who was preoccupied with translating the strange gem writings for Connie before turning back to Lapis. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Is this about Jasper?” He asked.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Jasper and Lapis didn’t exactly get along, but Steven hoped he could get them to talk out their issues and become friendly towards each other. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t like her.” Lapis admitted. “She held me prisoner and had Peridot intergate me for information.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven winced at the revelation. He knew that Lapis had arrived on earth with Jasper and Peridot, but he was unclear on the details since nobody had bothered to fill him in. Everybody had just assured him that they won and that they had new allies. He had assumed that Twoie and the others managed to convince Jasper and Peridot of the beauty of earth, but realized now that their initial encounter probably wasn’t that peaceful. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“But that’s not what’s bothering me.” Lapis said.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven looked at her in surprise.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Is it…</span>
  <em>
    <span> the cluster</span>
  </em>
  <span>?” He asked, whispering the last part while glancing over at Connie.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He didn’t want to scare Connie by telling her about it especially since Twoie reassured him that the cluster didn’t pose a real threat to them. Still, Steven couldn’t help but worry about the geoweapon that resided in the earth’s core.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Lapis gave her head a small shake. “I thought when I got back to Homeworld all my problems would disappear, but I just ended up being a prisoner again.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re not a prisoner now.” He pointed out.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“But I’m still trapped here on earth, millions of light-years from Homeworld.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Homeworld, the planet where all gems came from and the place that Lapis had been so desperately trying to get to when they first met. She must have been feeling homesick, Steven realized. She had been trapped in a mirror for so long only to be taken prisoner the second she got home.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Lapis hesitated before continuing. “But you’re a Diamond, aren’t you?” she asked. “You could take me back to Homeworld and explain to the other Diamonds that I’m not a criminal.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It was true that he was a Diamond. Hypothetically, he should have no problems going back to Homeworld, but Twoie was adamant that nobody use the ship or contact anybody from Homeworld. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t know if going to Homeworld is a good idea.” he said. “Twoie doesn’t want me talking to the other Diamonds.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Not that Twoie ever really explained why he was so against the idea other than telling him the Diamonds were unreasonable. There was a lot about the Diamonds and Homeworld that Steven didn’t know and it seemed like Twoie and the others were content with keeping him in the dark about it.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Lapis sighed. “Twoie told me the other Diamonds don’t have much respect for you.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven raised an eyebrow at her statement. Apparently, Twoie had no issue talking about the Diamonds with anybody other than him. He made a mental note to confront Twoie about the issue before focusing his attention on Lapis.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Why not?” he asked her.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“They wanted to colonize the earth, but Pink Diamond was against the idea and eventually started the Crystal Gem Rebellion.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven nodded at her explanation. It made sense that the Diamonds would be upset at his mom for starting a war against them, but that had been thousands of years ago. They couldn’t still be mad about that, could they? Maybe if Steven talked to them then they would agree to let Lapis go back home and they might even agree to help with the cluster. Surely, it wouldn’t hurt to at least try? After all, Twoie had managed to get Jasper on their side. </span>
</p>
<hr/>
<p>
  <span>Twoie placed a comforting hand on Spinel’s shoulder while she cried. For a while, he eyed her gemstone warily waiting to see if it would glow and flip upside down. He eventually relaxed when he realized that Spinel was not angry and would most likely not be attacking anyone. Having someone there to help her process her loss seemed to be enough to stop vengeful thoughts from consuming her.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Occasionally, Twoie would mutter a few kind words or assurances but for the most part he just allowed Spinel to cry. And cry she did. Tears poured forth from her eyes like a waterfall and her small frame was racked with sobs.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Only when Spinel’s cries were reduced to quiet sniffles did Twoie finally speak, “Come back to earth with me.” he said, standing and offering her his hand. “You can start over there, make new friends.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Unlike the last time this had happened, Spinel did not hesitate in taking his hand and hoisting herself up into a standing position. He took a step forward, pausing when Spinel did not follow. She was staring at the vines and weeds that ensnared her feet and prevented her from moving. He was just about to go help her when Spinel, in one swift motion, pulled herself free from the ground. She quickly did the same with her other foot and took her first hesitant steps away from the spot she had been standing in for several thousand years.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>They continued on their slow trek to the warp pad, finally stopping when they reached the bottom of the large staircase. Twoie never imagined that stairs would one day be an obstacle he’d have to overcome, but here he was hesitating at the sight of them. He lifted one shaky leg upward and placed it onto the next step, his body screaming in protest to the action. He suppressed a sigh at the sight of the dozen other steps he would be forced to climb and focused on making sure his legs didn’t give out on him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>If Spinel was bothered by their snail-like pace she didn’t show it. Her eyes were shiny and held a far away look in them that made it difficult for Twoie to decipher what she was feeling. Hopefully, she would perk up when they got to earth, but that would probably take a while given how many steps there were still left.</span>
</p>
<hr/>
<p>
  <span>Getting Jasper to agree to contact the other Diamonds was more difficult that Steven expected since she was adamant about following the rules Twoie gave her. Lapis attempted to help, but her knowledge on gem technology was several thousand years old. So far, Connie was having the most success in getting them closer to their goal, although she had only managed to get the screen to change.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Connie’s brows were furrowed in concentration. “What if I…” she trailed off, as she made a series of gestures on the console.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The ship violently lurched forward and Connie immediately pulled her hands away.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Maybe we shouldn’t be doing this.” she said. “What if I accidentally set off an alien laser beam or something? It could be dangerous.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m sure we’ll be fine.” Steven said, determined to contact the Diamonds. “Plus, I’m pretty sure this ship doesn’t actually have any lasers.” he turned to Jasper. “Right, Jasper?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She shook her head. “The ship is armed with several lasers and other explosives.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Connie paled a bit at the information. She got off the chair and took a few steps away from the console as if she were afraid it would explode on her.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Let me try.” Lapis said.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She took a seat in the now empty chair. The ship jerked forward a few times before Lapis gave up. She huffed in frustration before giving Jasper a sharp look.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Shouldn’t you be able to contact Yellow Diamond?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“My Diamond was against the idea of contacting the other Diamonds.” Jasper said.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Please, Jasper.” Steven pleaded. “I just want to ask them a few questions. I promise I won’t even tell Twoie you let me talk to them.” he said.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Jasper stared at him for a few moments before ultimately relenting. She navigated past a few screens with more gem language plastered on them, before everything went blank. A few seconds passed where nothing happened, but eventually the screen flickered to life and Steven was left gaping at the face of another Pearl.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Before he could even think of something to say to her, a spear whizzed past him and lodged itself inside of the main console. The weapon was quickly followed up by a familiar and large gauntlet which succeeded in completely destroying the console and causing the monitor along with the other Pearl to disappear.  </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Steven!</span>
  </em>
  <span>” Pearl’s displeased voice shrieked. “What were you thinking?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven turned around and was met with three sets of equally disappointed eyes. Oh boy, he was in big trouble.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0021"><h2>21. Your New Best Friend</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The rest of the gang meets Spinel.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Never before in his life had Twoie been so overjoyed at the sight of a couch. It was such a simple piece of furniture, but one that he would never take for granted ever again. He dragged himself over to it and all but collapsed onto the soft cushions, his aching muscles crying out in relief at finally being allowed to rest.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He glanced over to Spinel who remained standing on the warp pad, her eyes flitting around the room as she took in her new surroundings. Changing locations so abruptly after spending thousands of years in the same place must have been a jarring experience, and it looked like she was still adjusting. Wanting her to feel more comfortable, Twoie patted a spot on the couch next to him and motioned for Spinel to come over.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Her first step off the warp pad was filled with hesitation and for a split second Twoie feared that she might teleport back to the garden, but thankfully Spinel continued onward toward the couch. Each of her steps slowly grew more confident and by the time she finally reached the couch she was walking normally.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Take a seat,” he said, patting the cushion beside him again. “If you want,” he hastily added, not wanting her to feel obligated to do anything she wasn’t comfortable with.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Spinel didn’t respond with words, but did sit down after a few seconds. Together, they sat in a comfortable silence as Twoie gathered his thoughts. He nearly drifted off to sleep a couple of times, but forced his eyes to remain open. The topic of Pink Diamonds death was still something he had yet to fully explain to Spinel and was something that was too important to put off for later.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>In the end he decided that being blunt and straightforward would be better than drawing out the conversation.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Back in the garden when I told you that Pink Diamond was gone I was telling the truth,” he began, leaving no room for a misunderstanding of the situation. “But there was something I didn’t tell you.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>If Spinel was at all upset by the fact that Twoie had hid something from her then she didn’t show it, her face was an unreadable mask as she waited for him to continue.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“While on earth, Pink Diamond decided that she wanted to have a human child.” He fiddled with the hem of his shirt. “And she did, but in order to do that she had to give up her physical form along with her gemstone.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Pink had a baby?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He nodded, relieved that Spinel seemed to understand what a child was. Pink Diamond must have brought her along to the human zoo enough times that she was familiar with the concept. It was a good thing too, because the last thing he wanted to do right now was to get into an awkward explanation about how babies were made.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“His name is Steven,” he said. “And he is </span>
  <em>
    <span>not</span>
  </em>
  <span> Pink Diamond, but he does have her gemstone.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He lifted up his shirt just enough to reveal the pink gemstone hidden there.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Spinel’s reaction was instantaneous. Her eyes widened to an almost comical size and her mouth fell agape as she stared at his gem.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Pink</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” she whispered, voice tinged with a mix of longing and hurt.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He stiffened at her words, muscles tensing as he braced himself for a negative reaction, but thankfully none ever came. Whatever mixed feelings Spinel had for Pink Diamond, she had decided not to take out on him. Instead, she merely stared at his gemstone for a few seconds longer before meeting his gaze and sending him a small nod of understanding.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re not Pink,” she said, further easing his fears. “You’re Steven?” she half stated, half asked.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, sort of,” he replied, pulling his shirt back down so that it covered his gemstone. “It’s kind of complicated.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>At her confused expression, Twoie gave her a simplified explanation of his existence as a time traveler, taking care to omit the part regarding his eventual demise. Unnecessarily upsetting Spinel would not do him any favors, after all.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Just call me Twoie,” he said. “It’s a name my younger self came up with.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Twoie,” she repeated, testing out the name. She smiled, “I like it.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>With that sorted out, he moved on to introducing Spinel to the others only to come to the realization that the house was empty. In his tired state, Twoie must have failed to notice their absence when he arrived back home. Even Peridot who had taken up residence in the living room was gone, no trace of her anywhere.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He moved to get up and investigate only to be met with resistance in the form of his aching muscles. Try as he might, his body absolutely refused to cooperate with him and he remained firmly planted on the couch. It was as if someone had replaced his limbs with lead, making them heavy as well as making any movement near impossible without considerable effort and energy on his part.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Spinel tilted her head to the side curiously as she watched his ongoing fight with gravity.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Is this another game?” she asked, gesturing toward the small jerking motions that he’d managed to get his body to make.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“No, I’m just… stretching” he lied while continuing to try and stand. It was only after a full minute of failed attempts did Twoie finally turn to Spinel for help. “I think I’m stuck. Do you think you can help me up?” he asked.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“You can count on me!” was Spinel’s cheery reply.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>In an instant she was up and standing right in front of him. She shapeshifted her arms so that they resembled a fishing rod and proceeded to hook the end of it on the back of his shirt. Slowly, Spinel began to reel him off of the couch only for him to immediately motion her to stop.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Put me down.” he quickly said through gritted teeth.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She immediately complied and Twoie winced as his body was unceremoniously dumped back onto the couch. The rapid movement sent waves of pain coursing through his body.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Ouch. Ouch. Ouch.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Getting off the couch was a bad idea. A </span>
  <em>
    <span>very</span>
  </em>
  <span> bad idea. Not only would standing be impossible in his state, but it would also be extremely painful. As much as Twoie hated the idea of resting when there was so much work to get done, he knew that he wouldn’t be able to accomplish anything as he was now.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Is.. is everything okay?” Spinel asked. She had moved to sit next to him again and was now watching him with concern. “Are you okay?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p><span>He was quick to flash her a reassuring smile, “I’m fine,” he said. “I’m just…” </span><em><span>painfully</span></em> <em><span>being erased from existence. </span></em><span>“... sleepy.”</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It wasn’t a total lie. Twoie really was sleepy and going with that answer was much better than the alternative of explaining his eventual death.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Spinel gave him a puzzled look, “Sleepy?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Ah, right. Gems didn’t know what sleep was.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“It means I’m tired,” he explained. “Sleeping is just the way humans rest.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Can I try?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He thought about it for a moment before nodding. Amethyst slept all the time and even Pearl had been able to fall asleep that one time. He didn’t see why Spinel couldn’t at least attempt it.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s easy,” he said. “You just have to relax, close your eyes—” he shut his tired eyes and let out a yawn. “—and don’t… think about… anything.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It took less than a second for him to fall asleep.</span>
</p><hr/>
<p>
  <span>Standing still on the shore in front of the handship, Steven stared unhappily at the sand beneath his sandals while he waited for his scolding to come to an end. To say that contacting Homeworld was a terrible idea was the definition of an understatement, and it seemed that the gems would not get tired of reminding him of that fact. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>After they had destroyed the console and cut his call with the Diamonds short, Pearl had immediately sent Connie home and given him a verbal lashing about endangering others and being reckless. Garnet had added onto the scolding by grounding him from watching TV for two thousand years (it had initially been one thousand but Garnet had doubled it when he tried to defend his actions). Even Amethyst who was usually the most laid back of the three had lectured him on his rash actions and had all but called him crazy for wanting to contact the Diamonds. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Lapis had jumped to his defence, but the gems would not listen to anything she had to say which resulted in a small argument and Lapis angrily taking off into the skies. Surprisingly, Jasper remained silent throughout the exchange and didn’t even attempt to defend him, although Steven suspected it was because she felt guilty for not listening to Twoie and not because she actually agreed with the gems.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>In the end, it was decided that Steven was permanently banned from even going near the handship unless one of the Crystal Gems or Twoie accompanied him and that any investigation regarding the Diamonds was strictly prohibited. All of his protests were immediately shut down by a single stern look from Garnet who was especially intimidating that afternoon.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Halfway during one of Pearl’s lectures, Garnet had retrieved Peridot along with Bismuth to make some small alterations to the ship. Bismuth was mainly there to supervise Peridot (the gems still didn’t completely trust Jasper) while she made sure that any communication with Homeworld was disabled. It seemed that any chance that Steven had of contacting the Diamonds was now completely gone along with his TV watching privileges.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Steven,” Garnet said, her usual calm voice laced with disappointment. “I expect you to understand that what you did was not only wrong but very dangerous.” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Despite them claiming that their lecturing was over, all three gems continued to reprimand him for his actions even as they left the handship and headed toward the house. Peridot and Bismuth had remained on the ship to finish up the alterations meant to cut off communication while Jasper trailed silently behind him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, dude,” Amethyst said. “What were you thinking calling the Diamonds like that? They’re a bunch of psychos!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven frowned. “I thought that if I talked to the—”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“The Diamonds </span>
  <em>
    <span>can’t </span>
  </em>
  <span>be reasoned with,” Pearl said, stopping mid step to turn and face him. Her lips were pressed into a thin line of disappointment, and there was something else flitting across the surface of her eyes that gave Steven pause, an emotion he eventually recognized as fear. “Even with your status as… a Diamond, the other Diamonds wouldn't listen to a thing you say. They’re dangerous.” Her grip on the staircase railing tightened and Steven swore he heard the sound of wood splintering. “It’s best that none of us make</span>
  <em>
    <span> any </span>
  </em>
  <span>sort of contact with them.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>A part of him still wanted to protest, but he knew better than to argue with Pearl so he just nodded in agreement and muttered another quiet apology which succeeded in placating her for the time being. The rest of the short journey home was spent in silence as Steven racked his brain for other ways to get information on the Diamonds without getting in trouble.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The creaking of the wooden door signalled their arrival home. A quick scan of the place revealed that his dad had left and in his place, seated on the couch was an extremely pale and unconscious Twoie. That would be concerning all on its own, but the fact that an unknown gem was seated so closely next to him really put everyone on alert.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The new gem was a combination of different shades of pink with some white on her outfit. Her gemstone was on her chest and was in the recognizable shape of a heart. With her messy hair and tired eyes she gave off the appearance of someone who was exhausted, whether it was because she had recently been in a fight or some other reason Steven didn’t know.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Jasper was the first to respond, summoning her weapon for the first time since Steven met her. It was a large orange helmet with a visor in the front, most likely meant for protecting her gemstone. Ordinarily, he would be overjoyed at the opportunity of seeing some new gem weapons, but as Garnet and the other Crystal Gems followed Jasper’s lead and promptly summoned their own weapons Steven could only feel worry.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Jasper glowered at the mysterious gem, “Move away from my Diamond before I make you.” she warned.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Amethyst narrowed her eyes and tightened the hold on her whip, “Who the </span>
  <em>
    <span>heck</span>
  </em>
  <span> are you?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Garnet remained silent and merely studied the pink gem.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“It can’t be…” Pearl said with obvious disbelief in her voice, eyes glued to the intruder.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Her reaction was not one of fear or concern like the other gems. She looked surprised as if she’d just seen a ghost. It was as if she knew this gem. He hoped that was the case since that would mean the pink gem wasn’t going to attack them.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Unfortunately, it seemed that Jasper’s patience had run out at that exact moment. She angrily stomped over to the couch and pulled everybody’s attention over to the potential fight.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Move,” she said, her cold tone leaving no room for argument.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The pink gem who was tiny in comparison to Jasper’s towering stature, flinched at the demand and shrunk in on herself. It was at that moment that Steven decided the pink gem was not out to harm anybody and probably had nothing to do with Twoie’s unconscious state. He rushed over to her, ignoring Garnet’s orders to stay away and placed a calming hand on Jasper’s arm.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Don’t attack her,” he said. “I don’t think she’s here to hurt us.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>That was all Jasper needed to hear to dispel her helmet and back off of the smaller gem. Garnet and Amethyst were not so easy to convince, but thankfully Steven didn’t have to as Pearl did it for him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Steven’s right,” she said, pulling everybody’s attention to her. “Spinel is not a threat to us.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>At the sound of her name, Spinel turned her anxious gaze over to Pearl. Recognition flashed across the surface of her wide eyes. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re Pink’s Pearl…” she said.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl flinched at the mention of Pink Diamond, but did not deny the claim. So Pearl did know Spinel after all. Still, that didn’t explain why Twoie was passed out on the couch or why he was so pale.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“You know her, P?” Amethyst asked.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl nodded, “Spinel was Pink Diamonds little playmate, but I haven’t seen her in over 6,000 thousand years.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“That doesn’t matter right now,” Garnet said as she dispelled her gauntlets. “Twoie is still unconscious.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>At those words, everyone’s gaze turned to Twoie’s chalk-white face. He looked awful and was far too still for Steven’s liking. Feeling confident that Spinel would not attack him, Steven moved past her to get closer to Twoie. Even if she did decide to attack, Jasper and the others would no doubt prevent him from getting seriously injured, and if all else failed he always had his shield.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Twoie?” he called and, after getting no response, turned to Spinel, “What happened to him?” he asked.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“He’s sleeping,” was Spinel’s short and timid explanation. Her focus was mainly on the small group of gems who were now gathered around the couch uncertainly eyeing her. Their weapons were gone, but a worried tension still lingered.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Beside him Pearl gasped, “It’s getting worse…” she said.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Getting worse? Was something wrong with Towie? That would explain why he had nearly fainted earlier and why he looked so pale now, but as far as Steven knew Twoie wasn’t sick. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Amethyst bit at her lower lip, “You don’t think he’s…</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven furrowed his brow, looking back and forth between Amethyst and Pearl. Whatever they were talking about, it was clear that they didn’t want him to know about it. They kept shooting nervous glances his way that they thought he wouldn’t notice.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“He’s still breathing.” Garnet pointed to the steady rise and fall of Twoie’s chest. “His…” Even though her eyes were hidden behind her visor, Steven could practically feel her gaze on him. “Condition must be what’s causing this.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Condition?” Jasper questioned, voicing Steven’s thoughts. “Did you allow something to happen to my Diamond?” She growled out, turning her piercing glare away from Spinel and towards the Crystal Gems.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The three gems shared a silent conversation with their eyes before agreeing to something with a subtle nod of their heads.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Twoie is sick,” Garnet said. “And needs to rest.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Sick?” Jasper repeated, irritation in her tone. “What’s that?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh, it’s nothing serious!” Pearl insisted. “It’s just something that happens to human beings from time to time.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, it’s totally natural,” Amethyst quickly agreed. “Twoie’s going to be </span>
  <em>
    <span>fine</span>
  </em>
  <span>. There’s nothing to worry about.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven watched as Twoie’s breathing became shallow and strained. He tuned out the conversation around him and placed a worried hand on Twoie’s shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze. When that failed to wake him he gave it a small shake, catching the attention of the gems around him who insisted he stop.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“We should let Twoie rest for now,” Garnet said. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven reluctantly pulled his hand away from Twoie just as his eyes fluttered open.</span>
</p><hr/>
<p>
  <span>The room was too bright and irritated his sensitive eyes, causing Twoie to let out a small groan of discomfort as his vision slowly adjusted. After a few moments of confusion in which he struggled to recall where he was, Twoie was able to make out a row of worried faces looking down on him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He stared at the small group gathered around him and took note of the absence of Peridot, Bismuth, and Lapis. Aside from them everyone was present and intently watching him with varying expressions of concern.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He suppressed a yawn as he rubbed his eyes, clearing them of any remaining drowsiness. Before his impromptu nap he had practically been glued to the couch, unable to even lift a finger without being assaulted by a wave of pain. Now, his limbs were sore and hurt slightly when moved, but at least he </span>
  <em>
    <span>could</span>
  </em>
  <span> move them. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The first one to break the silence was Steven, “Twoie!” he cried, tackling him into a hug that only hurt slightly. Twoie tried not to wince at the jolt of pain and did his best to hug him back. “You’re awake!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Despite Steven’s enthusiastic greeting the other gems remained where they were, standing somewhat stiffly while they warily eyed the gem seated closest to him: Spinel. The anxiety in Spinel’s eyes all but vanished when their gazes met, her rigid body relaxing when he sent her a reassuring smile. Jasper and the Crystal Gems must not have reacted well to a strange gem appearing out of nowhere especially since he’d probably been unconscious and defenseless when they met.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Deciding that breaking the current tension in the room was priority number one, Twoie pulled a surprised Spinel into his ongoing hug with Steven. She stiffened for a split second before eagerly returning the embrace. While being hugged by two people was somewhat painful, he was glad he did it because whatever tension left in the room disappeared soon after.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Guys,” he said, addressing the small group. “This is Spinel, my </span>
  <em>
    <span>friend</span>
  </em>
  <span>.” he said, emphasizing the fact that she was most certainly not a threat.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Steven pulled himself from the embrace and happily introduced himself to a somewhat shy Spinel.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Hi, my name is Steven,” he said. “Are you from Homeworld too?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Spinel nodded, “I don’t think I’ll be going there for a while.” she admitted somewhat glumly before cheering up slightly. “I heard earth is a good place to make some… new friends.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>At the mention of friends Steven perked up, his eyes excitedly sparkling. “Earth’s great!” he agreed. “And I can introduce you to a bunch my friends. They’re the best. There’s Connie who is super smart and…”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>With some effort on his part, Twoie stood and let Spinel get to know her new friend who was cheerfully giving her a list of awesome friends who she absolutely had to meet. Steven laughed at something Spinel had said and just like that the room came to life and was flooded with worried questions, confused chatter, and relieved laughter that was all directed at him. Amethyst in particular, went on about how she knew he was fine and how she hadn’t even been worried for a second.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Amethyst gave him a pat on the back only to grimace at the sight of his face, “Dude, you look like shi—”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pearl cut her off, “Amethyst!” she reprimanded, gesturing toward Steven who was still within earshot.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“... Poop,” she finished. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Twoie let out a small chuckle at her comment, “Yeah, well, I feel like poop,” he admitted.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The only thing he was interested in now was sleeping, but it was still the middle of the day and he had just woken up from a nap so he knew it would be awhile before he could rest. Instead, he diverted his attention to the missing gems.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Where’s everybody else?” he asked.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He wasn’t too worried about Lapis and Bismuth, but Peridot’s absence was troubling him. If she somehow managed to escape and get aboard the handship then…</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Garnet must have sensed his unease because she immediately reassured him. “Peridot is with Bismuth,” she said. “And Lapis is still on earth.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>While he was glad that Peridot was not running around causing trouble, Twoie couldn’t help but raise a brow at Garnet’s last statement. Where else would Lapis be but on earth? However, before he could ask any further questions Jasper stepped forward, a guilty expression on her usually stoic face.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ve failed you, my Diamond.” she said, bowing so low Twoie feared she would fall over.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He blinked, puzzled by her remorseful behavior and looked to the others for answers. Something had definitely transpired within the time he was gone, he just hopped in was nothing serious. When the only answer he received from the other gems was a set of three uneasy faces, he addressed Jasper.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“What do you mean?” he asked. “You didn’t fail me.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Jasper straightened up in order to address him properly, although her arms were still locked in a respectful salute.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I contacted Yellow Diamond.” she said.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>His brain short circuited. Whatever he had expected her to say </span>
  <em>
    <span>that </span>
  </em>
  <span>was definitely not it.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“You… </span>
  <em>
    <span>What</span>
  </em>
  <span><em>?!</em>”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Jasper flinched. From the couch Steven and Spinel’s animated conversation died down as both of them turned to look at him. He was quick to school his features to something resembling calm and even managed to send them a strained smile which he dropped the second they looked away.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He must have been hearing things. There was know way Jasper </span>
  <em>
    <span>actually</span>
  </em>
  <span> called Yellow Diamond, right? His eyes darted to the faces of the three other gems. He hoped to find a hint of a smile, a sparkle of amusement, or anything that would indicate Jasper’s statement as being just some elaborate prank, but all he found were grim and serious faces.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>His heart sank. Oh no, this was bad.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0022"><h2>22. Echoes From The Future</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Steven gets a phone call and Twoie reacts.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Sorry for not updating sooner. I had a nasty case of writer's block.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Of all the issues currently on his plate, the Diamonds were one Twoie didn’t expect to have to deal with so soon. Of course he was aware of the huge threat they posed to the planet, but at this point in time they shouldn’t have been overly interested in the earth as they were still mourning the supposed shattering of Pink Diamond. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ideally, Twoie had hoped to keep Yellow Diamond in the dark about the deactivation of the cluster by sending her fake status reports via Peridot. If all went well, the earth would have been saved long before Yellow suspected something was amiss. Frustratingly, his plan had essentially been thrown in the trash and lit on fire with the revelation that Yellow Diamond had been contacted.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Why</span>
  </em>
  <span> would you contact Yellow Diamond?” Twoie asked through gritted teeth as he struggled to keep his voice down. The group consisting of the three Crystal Gems and Jasper had moved to the kitchen, but could still easily be overhead by Steven and Spinel if they were not quiet. “I specifically asked you to </span>
  <em>
    <span>not</span>
  </em>
  <span> contact Homeworld while aboard the ship.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>The Crystal Gems shared confused looks at his statement.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Hold up,” Amethyst said. “You actually sent Jasper to the ship on </span>
  <em>
    <span>purpose</span>
  </em>
  <span>?”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s not important right now,” he answered, sounding crankier than he would have liked. Coupled with his aching body, the revelation that Yellow Diamond had been contacted was not helping his mood in the slightest. “You were just supposed to give them a tour.” he told Jasper, who avoided his gaze.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Ordinarily, he would have been overjoyed at the thought of Jasper making her own decisions independent of whatever he wanted, but contacting the Diamonds was a serious mistake.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m sorry, my Diamond,” Jasper said, bowing low.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>He pinched the bridge of his nose. “How long was the call? And what did you tell her?” he asked.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Depending on how the call went, Yellow might be inclined to send more gems to earth in order to check up on the cluster. Even worse, she might decide to personally show up and investigate, something which he couldn’t imagine ending well.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>It was Pearl who answered, “We were successfully able to end the call before Yellow Diamond made an appearance.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Her Pearl saw us,” Garnet said, crossing her arms. “Steven was in view during the call.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, but it was only for a second,” Amethyst hastened to add. “She didn’t even get to say anything before the call ended.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>At her words, the tightness in his shoulders loosened somewhat. Still, Yellow Pearl should have reported the strange incident to her Diamond. A direct call to a Diamond communication line was something that was taken very seriously and an investigation was most certainly already underway to find out who exactly had been calling.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie rubbed at his face, suppressing a sigh. Terrible couldn’t even begin to describe their situation. They were one mistake away from having a fleet of Homeworld ships arriving at their doorstep. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“We need to deactivate the communication devices on the handship,” he said.</span>
  <span>
    <br/>
    <br/>
  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We already sent Peridot to do just that,” Pearl said. “And Bismuth is watching her to make sure she doesn’t try and escape.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie nodded. Good, the sooner they cut ties with Homeworld the better. The only question now was, why Jasper had decided to call Yellow Diamond in the first place. It wasn’t like her to just randomly go against what he asked of her. There must have been some reason for her impromptu call.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Jasper,” he called, catching the gem's attention and forcing her to straighten up. “Why did you contact Yellow Diamond?”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>She shifted in place and silently pondered something, her face scrunching up in concentration. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>He raised a brow at her hesitant behavior. “Jasper?”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“My Diamond wanted to speak with Yellow Diamond,” she finally said.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>He frowned. “What?” </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>That made no sense. Twoie didn’t remember asking her to contact Yellow unless… he shifted his gaze over to the living room where Steven was excitedly showing Spinel how to play a board game.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Steven</span>
  </em>
  <span>…”</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>As Steven quickly found out, Spinel was insanely good at board games. While she had no real experience with them before coming to earth, she was a fast learner and was now absolutely dominating in their latest game of Citchen Calamity.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Despite not doing as well as he would have like, Steven was still enjoying himself. It wasn’t often that someone was willing to play Citchen Calamity with him since they either found it confusing or boring, but Spinel was having the time of her life. Board games in general fascinated her especially since (to Steven’s surprise) Homeworld didn’t have any. What kind of planet didn’t have any games?</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Spinel grinned as she read her card, “Yay!” she cheered, turning the card around so he could see it. “I got the golden can opener.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh no,” Steven gasped. “That means…”</span>
  <span>
    <br/>
    <br/>
  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Her grin only widened. “I can check my soups for the alphabet bonus </span>
  <em>
    <span>and</span>
  </em>
  <span> I’m one step closer to victory,” she said, happily pumping her fist in the air.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Steven sent her a confident smile, still hopeful he could turn the match around. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Don’t count me out yet.” He picked up a card and began to read it, “The sponge in your sink is covered in mold.” he said, frowning. He just lost two whole turns while Spinel still had a substantial lead. There was no way he was going to catch up to her now. “Aww, man.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Before he could dwell on his inevitable loss any longer, the sound of harsh whispers pulled his attention over to the kitchen area where Twoie and the other gems stood discussing something he struggled to hear. Whatever it was, it wasn’t pleasant. The group radiated a tension that Steven could feel all the way from the living room.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie was especially on edge, his gaze flitting across the room and never settling on anything for long as if he were searching for someone determined to ambush him. Pearl placed a hand on his shoulder only for Twoie to jerk away from her touch, bumping into a counter and knocking a stray mug onto the floor.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>The sound of shattered glass reverberated throughout the house. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Steven quickly turned away from the scene and pretended to be focused on Spinel’s next move while he strained to hear their conversation.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“... be fine… we’re safe.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“... calm down…  deep breaths.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“... already grounded Steven.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Steven winced, deducing that the topic of their discussion was his failed call to Homeworld. With the earlier scoldings still fresh in his mind Steven really,</span>
  <em>
    <span> really</span>
  </em>
  <span> hoped Twoie didn’t react negatively. A 2,000 year ban from television was bad enough, the last thing he needed was </span>
  <em>
    <span>more </span>
  </em>
  <span>punishments.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“... shouldn’t have called Yellow Diamond!” </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Sadly, it seemed that luck just wasn’t on his side that day, because a moment later Twoie was stomping over towards him with an uncertain group of gems trailing nervously behind him. Spinel stopped what she was doing to stare up at an irritated Twoie who now loomed over them with crossed arms and narrowed eyes</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Steven plastered on a nervous smile and hoped for the best.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, Twoi—”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Why would you contact the Diamonds?” Twoie asked.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Lapis was feeling really homesick and I thought if—”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“No, no,” Twoie said, shaking his head and pinching the bridge of his nose. “What made you think that contacting </span>
  <em>
    <span>Yellow Diamond</span>
  </em>
  <span> was a good idea?”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I—”</span>
  <span>
    <br/>
    <br/>
  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“She’s dangerous, Steven!” Twoie continued, stomping his foot against the floor. His harsh features softened slightly when he glanced over at Spinel’s worried face. He took a deep breath before continuing, “</span>
  <em>
    <span>All</span>
  </em>
  <span> of the Diamonds are dangerous and we shouldn’t even be trying to contact them,” he said.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Steven looked to the gems for support, but they were still upset with him and only gave disapproving frowns in response. While he understood the potential danger that the Diamonds posed, Steven didn’t understand their negative reactions to the call. Even if the call went badly, the Diamonds were still millions of lightyears away on some far off planet. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I just wanted to talk to—”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“You can’t </span>
  <em>
    <span>just</span>
  </em>
  <span> talk to a Diamond, Steven,” Twoie said. “The second they realize you have Pink Diamonds gemstone they’ll…” he shook his head. “You’re not ready to talk to them, you </span>
  <em>
    <span>shouldn’t</span>
  </em>
  <span> have to talk to them. It’s too dangerous.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Steven frowned, somewhat offended at his statement. Sure, he wasn’t the strongest Crystal Gem, but he was confident in his ability to defend himself. Summoning his shield was almost second nature to him now, and he could even float somewhat consistently.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I can protect myself,” he said, briefly summoning his shield as proof. Twoie opened his mouth to argue, but Steven continued before he could interrupt, “And we have so many new gems on our side now. I know that the Diamonds might not want to talk to us, but shouldn’t we at least try?”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie stared at him for a full second before letting out a long-suffering sigh and muttering something under his breath.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I…” Twoie ran a frustrated hand through his hair before continuing, “I actually talked to the Diamonds in my time...” he admitted, voice timid.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Steven blinked, taken aback by the statement. It wasn’t often Twoie brought up the subject of his time or the Diamonds. Because of the pictures on Twoie’s phone and the strange dreams he would occasionally enter, Steven figured his older self frequently interacted with the Diamonds. That should have meant that Twoie was at least somewhat friendly with them, but he always steered clear of that topic for reasons he never fully explained.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl each leaned forward slightly in an attempt to better hear Twoie. Their stern faces softened as curiosity shone in their eyes.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“They’re… difficult to work with and getting them to listen is almost impossible,” Twoie said. “I really, </span>
  <em>
    <span>really</span>
  </em>
  <span> tried to change their mind and after years on Homeworld I eventually did, but…”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>He stared off into space, eyes slowly glazing over as he lost himself in his thoughts. Like a statue, he was rooted to his spot with his already pale face turning ashen.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Without warning, the screen of his phone that rested atop the table flickered to life, leaving Steven staring at a grainy screen of flashing colors. Despite the poor quality of the video, the audio was perfectly clear as it echoed in the, now, almost oppressive silence of the living room. No one dared move as the video played.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Twoie sat on a pink throne that was much too big for him. He was smiling, but it didn’t reach his eyes. He let out a tired chuckle.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“...Thank you, Yellow,” Twoie’s said. “I’ll be sure to keep your advice in mind for next time.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>One of the gems gasped, but Steven was too busy trying to figure out who the blurry yellow blob on the screen was to pay much attention to it. The strange video stabilized enough to where he could make out the face of a disappointed gem which he instantly identified as one of the Diamonds from Twoie’s dreams.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Be sure to work on your posture as well, Pink,” she said, her focus mainly on a yellow screen floating in front of her. “It’s unbecoming for a Diamond to slouch.” She frowned and swiped at her screen a few times before continuing, “Your tendency to hum during a ball must also come to an end. If you really wish to be taken seriously then you must conduct yourself in a manner befitting a Diamond.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie’s eyes were still unfocused, but he was now rapidly blinking as bright spots of pink appeared on his pallid cheeks.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>The focus of the video shifted to another gem. She was blue, her tired eyes carrying a deep sadness. She must have been Blue Diamond. There were some more gasps from the gems at her appearance followed by some frantic whispers, but it didn’t last long as everyone hurried to quiet down and listen.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Don’t be too harsh on her, Yellow,” she said. “She’s still recovering from what was done to her on earth.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Yellow Diamond paused her methodical tapping of the screen to give the blue gem an annoyed look, “You can’t keep coddling her forever, Blue,” she said. “She’s had plenty of time to adjust and shouldn’t be making such simple mistakes.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>The screen flashed and the scene shifted. Yellow wisps of crackling energy filled the screen. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Someone was crying.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“You always manage to disappoint me, Pink.” Yellow Diamond’s voice was dripping with annoyance. “Stop crying, you’re a Diamond. You can’t keep acting out if you want White to—</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie was glowing, literally. His face was an unnatural pink color and it was only spreading farther down his neck and arms. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Steven gasped, eyes widening at the sight of a completely pink Twoie—a familiar sight. One of Amethyst’s first arguments with Twoie ended in a flash of pink and a permanently dented Sky arena. At the time Steven had been too shaken to question it, but now… </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“They’re coming to earth,” Twoie said, the fog in his eyes finally lifting and giving way to fear.  “I can’t… not again.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Flash. Blue Diamond was frowning.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“You’re not leaving this tower until you apologize!” Her tired eyes hardened as she glared at the screen.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I’m not apologizing!” Twoie shouted back. His voice was high-pitched. He must have been younger. “I’m not Pink Diamond! My name is Steven Uni—”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Enough, Pink!”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie lunged for the phone only to trip and crash into the coffee table, sending the boardgame flying across the living room and the phone crashing to the ground. His erratic behavior caught the attention of the gems who rushed over to him with wrinkled brows and frantic questions. Even Spinel joined in, but Twoie ignored everybody in favor of staring at the phone that was still rapidly displaying disjointed memories. Color and sound both blurred into each other, creating an unintelligible mess that only agitated Twoie more.</span>
</p><p>
  <strong>
    <br/>
    <br/>
  </strong>
</p><p>
  <span>Flash. The screen was engulfed in white. Everything went silent, only for a calm voice to speak a moment later.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Surely, you can understand why I can’t let you leave. Look what you did to yourself last time.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Manic eyes and black lips filled the screen. Sharp black nails glistened in the blinding light slowly getting close and closer. The erratic pounding of a terrified heart muffled the eerie voice.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“It’s time to come out, Pink…”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Engulfed in a Pink hue, Twoie tugged at his hair as if he intended to rip it out. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Steven rushed to turn the screen off, but his phone didn’t respond to any buttons he pressed. In the end, he just shoved it under a couch cushion and hoped it was enough to muffle the sounds. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>With the phone gone, Twoie snapped out of whatever trance he’d been under and now paced the living room as he muttered to himself about the Diamonds. He waved off any attempts the gems made to comfort him, and remained a bright pink even as Steven moved to join the group.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“You should be resting,” Pearl said, hands clasped together. “We already took care of the situation. Any further communication with Homeworld should be impossible.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“It doesn’t matter,” Twoie said, gripping his hair. “It’s too late. They’re probably on their way to earth now!”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Garnet placed a steadying hand on his shoulder, “You need to try and calm down,” she said. “The Diamonds are still on Homeworld, the earth is safe.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“There’s nothing to worry about,” Amethyst agreed, her voice soothing. “Just try and relax, dude. All this freaking out can’t be healthy.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t have time to waste relaxing!” Twoie said, voice rising. He ran a jerky hand through his messy hair. “The Diamonds are going to be here any second!”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie hugged himself as his eyes darted toward all the possible exits. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“The Diamonds aren’t here,” Steven said. “Everybody is saf—”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“You don’t know that!” His pink skin grew brighter. “And now because of </span>
  <em>
    <span>your </span>
  </em>
  <span>call, Yellow Diamond is headed straight to earth.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Steven flinched, wilting at the accusation. He didn’t mean to put the planet in danger. He just wanted to help Lapis and didn’t see the harm in making a simple call, but now as Twoie stared down at him with wide and frenzied eyes that caused chills to run down his spine Steven finally grasped the severity of the situation. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I d-didn’t mean—” he stammered, at a loss for words. He wanted to apologize, explain himself, take back his actions. “I thought the Diamon—”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“You don’t know anything about the Diamonds!” Twoie shouted, the air around him vibrating with wild energy. “You’re just a kid!”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>The ground rumbled and the furniture shook as a blast of power sent Steven stumbling. He struggled to regain his footing as shards of the glass window flung themselves around the room, a few of them coming dangerously close to pelting him.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>A deafening silence descended upon the group. Twoie stared at his bright pink hands, then at the damage surrounding him.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I…” he took a step back. “I’m going to my room,” he said, bolting toward the temple door. It glowed in response to his gemstone and Twoie disappeared a moment later.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Steven, stay here,” Garnet said, her voice firm and leaving no room for argument.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Without waiting for a response, Garnet used her own gemstones to enter the temple—Pearl and Amethyst following closely behind her. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Steven stared at the closing door and didn’t make an attempt to follow.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Figuring out where Twoie had run off to was easy. The temple only had a limited amount of rooms and Amethyst was pretty sure that he’d retreated into his own. The three gems did split up for a moment to do a brief search of the other rooms just to make sure Twoie wasn’t hiding there. After they failed to find him anywhere, they regrouped near Twoie’s room and entered together.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>The room which had been an empty pink void filled with clouds since Rose’s death was now completely changed. The pink clouds were replaced by wooden floors, and the empty space was filled with various pieces of furniture. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Amethyst was taken aback with how familiar the room was. It was almost an exact replica of the beach house where she had been moments ago. There were some small changes to the kitchen and there was a new upstairs addition, but other than that the two places were identical. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>And there, curled up on the white couch with his back towards them, was Twoie.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>The three gems shared a look, uncertain with how to proceed</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey there, buddy,” Amethyst eventually said, breaking the silence. She slowly approached and took a seat at the free end of the couch while Pearl and Garnet stood on either side of the couch, their worried gazes never leaving Twoie.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie curled into himself and remained silent</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span> She cleared her throat. “So, you wanna talk about what happened back there?” she asked. “Last time I checked humans don’t just randomly start changing colors unless something is seriously wrong.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>No response.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“We’re worried about you,” Garnet said. “But we can’t help if you don’t tell us what’s wrong.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie finally turned to look at them. The pink that once engulfed his body was now mostly contained to his cheeks. In his hands was a small object with different colored faces. One side was blue, another was yellow, and the last two were pink and white. He worlessly fiddled with the object, a deep frown on his face.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“They were memories,” Pearl suddenly said.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Amethyst raised a brow.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“The videos on the phone,” she explained. “They were memories, Twoie’s memories… about the Diamonds.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie sighed and looked away, confirming Pearl’s suspicions.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Amethyst frowned. As far as she could tell the Diamonds were uptight and just plain terrible to be around. No wonder Twoie had reacted so negatively to the news of Yellow Diamond being called. She wouldn’t want to be around someone like that either. Still, something that wasn’t the garbage attitudes of the Diamonds bothered her on a much deeper level.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Of all of the memories shown, not one of them featured a happy Twoie. Sure, he smiled in one of them, but it wasn’t a </span>
  <em>
    <span>real</span>
  </em>
  <span> smile. It was a strained and tired grin, painfully painted on for the sake of pleasing the Diamonds. The defeat residing in Twoie’s dull eyes made her shudder and dread of a day where the wonder from Steven’s eyes disappeared.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“What happened with you and the Diamonds?” Amethyst asked. “You said you changed their minds, but you didn’t look too happy about it…”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie stiffened and didn’t respond. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Her frown deepened. “I know you don’t wanna talk about that junk, but—”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>
    <br/>
  </span>
  <span>“I’ll tell you,” Twoie said.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>She blinked. “What?”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“My time, future events, the… Diamonds. Everything,” he said, “I tell you everything.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Huh, she hadn’t actually been expecting him to agree that quickly—not that she was complaining.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie shifted from his spot on the couch and straightened up, his hands still idly tinkering with the mysterious colorful object. For a while he was silent, quietly collecting his thoughts before taking a deep breath and beginning his explanation.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I guess it all started when Jasper came to earth,” Twoie said. “Except back then, I could barely even summon my shield and we didn’t have Bismuth on our side either. Garnet was destabilized right in front of me and—” he rubbed a spot on his head. “—the next thing I remember, I was on a spaceship headed for Homeworld. Things only got worse from there...”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>She listened carefully as Twoie described future events. And boy, did the future sound bleak. From floating endlessly in the cold void of space, to crashing a spaceship, and fighting a fusion made of hatred—Twoie had plenty of brushes with death. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Discovering that Bismuth was the cause of one of those near death experiences shocked both Garnet and Pearl who thought the world of their old friend.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“That doesn’t make any sense,” Pearl said. “Why would Bismuth attack you?”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“She thought I was Rose Quartz,” Twoie answered, not bothering to explain any further.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“She felt betrayed by Rose,” Garnet surmised, frowning. “And she took it out on you... ”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie gave a small nod and quickly moved on from that topic.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Sometimes he would interrupt himself or pause at certain points of his story, giving Amethyst the impression that he was glossing over certain events. She didn’t call him out on it, assuming the memories were unpleasant and trusting him to cover the most important events. Eventually, he got to the part about the Diamonds which began with strange dreams about Blue Diamond and resulted in Greg being kidnapped and taken to some creepy human zoo.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>After their successful rescue mission, Beach City became the site of several disappearances. When he was unable to defeat the two powerful gems behind the kidnappings, Twoie gave himself up as Rose Quartz in order to save some humans. Thankfully, he managed to escape Homeworld and make his way back to earth. It wasn’t until after Garnet’s wedding celebration that the Diamonds realized Twoie had Pink Diamond’s gemstone.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“The Diamonds must have been furious,” Garnet said. “Finding out that Rose Quartz was actually Pink Diamond…”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Actually,” Twoie said. “The Diamonds were really happy to see me, Blue wouldn’t stop crying.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Happy?” Pearl asked. “But the Diamonds hated Rose Quartz! The Crystal Gem rebellion stood against everything they believed in.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie shrugged. “I guess, The Diamonds were just relieved that Pink Diamond wasn’t actually shattered that they forgot to be mad.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“So, what?” Amethyst said. “The Diamonds just started being buddy-buddy with you?”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie grimaced. “Not exactly… Turns out the Diamonds were </span>
  <em>
    <span>so</span>
  </em>
  <span> happy that Pink Diamond was still alive that they didn’t even believe me when I told them I wasn’t her. They thought I was just ‘doing a voice’ and ‘fooling around’.” he sighed. “They wanted me to go back to Homeworld with them… ”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“And you did,” Garnet said. “They forced you.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeesh,” Amethyst said. “Everything I learn about the Diamonds just makes me hate them more.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“They didn’t force me,” Twoie said. Everybody gave him incredulous looks. “I mean, they probably would have, but at the time I actually </span>
  <em>
    <span>wanted</span>
  </em>
  <span> to go to Homeworld.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t understand,” Pearl said, a deep frown on her face. “Why would you </span>
  <em>
    <span>willingly </span>
  </em>
  <span>go with the Diamonds?”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Because,” Twoie said. “They had the cure for corruption.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Pearl gasped, Amethyst’s eyes widened, and even Garnet stiffened. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“What?!” Pearl exclaimed. “How? Even Rose never found a way to cure corruption and she spent centuries researching possible methods.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“All four Diamonds needed to be together for it to work,” Twoie explained. “I hoped that if I went to Homeworld, I could convince White Diamond to help. I just never expected that trying to talk to her would be so difficult… ”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Apparently, It took several years for Twoie to get a meeting with White Diamond and during all those years he had lived on Homeworld. What’s worse, Blue and Yellow Diamond still believed Twoie was Pink Diamond and treated him accordingly. He was expected to take on all sorts of obligations from filing reports, restoring his court, and learning the basics of planet colonization. It sounded horrible.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>And when he finally </span>
  <em>
    <span>did</span>
  </em>
  <span> get to speak with White Diamond, the meeting quickly took a turn for the worse. Twoie glossed over most of the details, only briefly mentioning a fight which resulted in White Diamond changing her mind. After that, healing the corrupted gems was easy.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>It was quiet for a moment as everybody digested his story and its implications. Corruption could be cured and that was great news, but it would require the Diamonds. And the only one capable of getting them to agree was… </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“We failed,” Garnet said, her gaze glued to the gemstones on her hands. “We shouldn’t have let any of that happen to you. We should have protected you more…”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Pearl reached out to place a hand on Twoie’s shoulder, but pulled back at the last moment.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, Twoie…” she said. “I’m </span>
  <em>
    <span>so </span>
  </em>
  <span>sorry. I never wanted you to have to deal with any of this. Your experiences with the Diamonds must have been awful.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“It doesn’t matter,” Twoie said, the last remnants of pink fading from his face. “We’re not going to let any of that happen to Steven, we’re going to change the future.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“The timeline is extremely fragile,” Garnet said. “Changing too much, too soon could be dangerous and your… condition.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Garnet’s right, dude.” Amethyst said. “As much as we want to change the future for the better it’s not worth it if it ends up hurting you.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Pearl nodded. “We should focus on trying to get you back to your time. If we send you back now then maybe…”</span>
  <span>
    <br/>
    <br/>
  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It doesn’t matter,” Twoie said. “I don’t ma—”</span>
  <span>
    <br/>
    <br/>
  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Steven,” Garnet said, her voice clear and firm. The use of his real name completely silenced Twoie. “Changing the timeline is out of the question. We’re not going to let anything happen to </span>
  <em>
    <span>either </span>
  </em>
  <span>of you.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>The two of them stared intensely at each other, neither of them budging. Just when it looked like no one would win, Twoie abruptly sighed and dropped his gaze. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay,” he mumbled, staring at the multi colored object in his hands.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>After Twoie’s outburst, Steven distracted himself by helping clean up the shards of glass that dangerously lay on the floor. Well, at least he tried to help. It was hard to do anything when Jasper insisted on cleaning the mess up herself. She treated it like some sort of apology for getting him in trouble with Twoie even though Steven had assured her that he didn’t blame her for that. Still, she insisted on doing the task alone and Steven ended up having to show her how to use a broom.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>For a while Steven waited by the temple door for one of the gems or Twoie to come out, but once it became clear that they would be in there a while he invited Spinel to play games with him in an attempt to pass the time. While they played, Steven couldn’t help but rehearse apologies in his head. Twoie’s earlier accusation echoed in his head and caused a wave of guilt to wash over him, making it almost impossible for him to think about anything else.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie had called him a kid, an insult which cut deep since Steven had worked his absolute hardest to be seen as mature by the gems. Part of the reason why Pearl and Garnet refused to let him go on missions in the past was because they only saw him as a child. Having Twoie yell at him like that reminded him that despite his newfound control over his powers, the gems still only thought of him as an irresponsible kid.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re turn,” Spinel gently reminded him, pulling him out of his thoughts.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>He glanced at their ongoing game of tic tac toe and half-heartedly scribbled a large X in one of the empty spaces, not caring if it wasn’t the best move.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Spinel, do you think I’m irresponsible?” he asked.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Spinel drew an O that prevented him from winning as she pondered the question. He had only known Spinel for a few hours now, but he was genuinely curious as to what her response would be. Was there something about him that made people think he wasn’t mature? Sure, sometimes he could be impulsive and he had made some mistakes in the past (the incident at the sea spire came to mind), but he had grown a lot since then.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“You seem pretty responsible to me, Stevie,” Spinel finally said, pushing the sheet of paper towards him. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>He glanced at their current game which would undoubtedly end in a draw and jotted down another X, blocking Spinel from victory.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Is this because of earlier?” she asked, frowning slightly as she recalled the incident.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>He nodded. “I don’t think Twoie and the gems trust me very much,” he said. “They never tell me what’s going on unless they have to and now they're all mad at me for trying to talk to Yellow Diamond.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Spinel gave him a sympathetic look and hesitated for a moment before quietly adding, “Pink used to worry ‘bout that too.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>His eyes subconsciously darted over to the framed painting of his mom that hung over the living room. It was hard imagining someone </span>
  <em>
    <span>not</span>
  </em>
  <span> taking her seriously. She was the leader of the Crystal gems, </span>
  <em>
    <span>everybody</span>
  </em>
  <span> respected her.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“She did?”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Spinel nodded as she flipped the paper over and began to set up another game of tic tac toe. She paused for a moment as she decided where to place her first O down, pushing the paper toward him when she was done.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“The other Diamonds never listened to her,” she said. “She tried </span>
  <em>
    <span>everything</span>
  </em>
  <span> to make the Diamonds respect her, but nothing ever seemed to work.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh,” he said, deflating a bit. He drew an X in one of the empty spaces.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>But</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Spinel continued, gently taking the paper away from him and placing another O down. “Eventually, Pink convinced the other Diamonds that she was responsible enough to have her own planet.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Her expression soured for a moment, but she quickly recovered and handed him the paper.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>He placed down another X.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“What convinced the Diamonds of that?” he asked. Maybe he could do the same thing and make Twoie and the gems trust him more. It was worth a try at least, even if it didn’t work.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Spinel placed down her next O before shrugging. “Don’t know,” she admitted. “One day they just changed their minds. Pink was so happy…”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Steven frowned, disappointed that he had no idea how to prove himself to the others. He absentmindedly drew an X as he wracked his brain for ideas.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Don’t be sad,” Spinel said, offering him an encouraging  smile. “And don’t give up. ‘Cause if I can see how responsible you are then it’s only a matter of time ‘till everybody else sees it too.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“You really think so?”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I know so,” Spinel said confidently as she stared at their game.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>He glanced down at the paper, noticing the row of three Xs neatly stacked ontop of each other. He had won.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The temple door opened.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0023"><h2>23. Day At The Barn</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Steven is determined to help in building the drill.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>The old barn was surrounded by lush, green fields littered with patches of vibrant flowers. A cool and refreshing gust of wind blew in, bringing an earthy and sweet scent with it. Steven lay on the soft grass, head resting on top of his arms as he stared up at the cloudless, blue sky. Sometimes he would catch glimpses of Lapis who circled the landscape from overhead, dipping and weaving in random patterns.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven pushed himself into a sitting position and let out a heavy sigh. “Well, this sucks,” he complained out loud.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>When Twoie and the gems had exited the temple, Steven had been prepared to apologize for his actions. He’d carefully gathered his thoughts and nervously approached only to be caught off guard when Twoie apologized to </span>
  <em>
    <span>him.</span>
  </em>
  <span> Then, he had gathered all the gems and announced his intention to begin construction of the drill.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Now, Steven was left to aimlessly wander the fields surrounding the barn as everybody else worked on stopping the cluster. Apparently, Twoie and the gems had all decided it was too dangerous for him to help and insisted he stay away from the barn.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Steven let out another sigh. “This really sucks.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>The clanging of metal and distant chatter pulled his attention towards the barn. The inside was a flurry of activity. In one corner, Peridot and Pearl stood over a table covered with drill schematics. Occasionally, one of them would move over to the nearby chalkboard before furiously scribbling or erasing something. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>The team consisting of Garnet, Bismuth, and Spinel was led by Amethyst. They busied themselves by sifting through the endless mountains of scrap metal, old clothing, and broken furniture in search of anything useful. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>And overseeing the whole operation was Twoie who was silently trailed by Jasper. He checked on the two groups, answering questions and resolving any disputes that broke out. Most of the arguments were centered around Peridot and Pearl who were constantly at odds with each other, snapping and shouting insults while they worked.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Steven slunk around the outside of the building, taking care to not be seen by any of the gems and slowly made his way towards Peridot who was now alone. Her most recent fight resulted in Pearl throwing her arms up in frustration before stomping away. Steven positioned himself so that he was standing in front of the chalkboard, most of his body hidden from view.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>He stole a glance at Pearl, who was busy discussing something with Twoie on the other side of the barn before speaking, “Do you need any help?” he asked.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Peridot who had been engrossed in her work up until that point let out a small yelp, dropping the pencil she had been writing with. She quickly composed herself before narrowing her eyes at him.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, it’s just you,” she said, voice flat.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Steven bent down and scooped the pencil off the ground. “Here,” he said, offering it to her. “You dropped this.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Peridot eyed him for a moment before snatching the pencil out of his hand. Wordlessly, she returned to inspecting the small pile of schematics strewn across the table, occasionally tapping the pencil against her chin.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“So…” he began, leaning on the table to get a better view of what she was working on. There were various complicated formulas scrawled over several sheets of paper and strange symbols that he struggled to comprehend. Eventually, his gaze landed on a simple concept sketch of a completed drill. It reminded him of a spinning top. “Drills, huh?”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Peridot paused her tapping to shoot him an annoyed look. “What do you want?”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Nothing,” Steven quickly answered. “I was just wondering if you needed any help. I’ve never built a drill before, but I used to help my dad fix the van when it broke down.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Peridot scoffed. “I’m a certified kindergartner,” she said.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Steven gave her a blank look.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Peridot let out an exasperated sigh. “No, I do not require your assistance,” she said. “Now, leave me so I can work in peace.” she made a shooing motion with her hand before turning her attention back to the schematics.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Steven frowned. He just wanted to help, so why wasn’t anybody letting him? Wasn’t he a Crystal Gem too? He grabbed a handful of papers from the table and sifted through them in an attempt to better understand the science behind the drill.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Steven</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Pearl said, her stern voice causing him to freeze and drop the papers. They scattered all over the floor in a jumbled mess.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“My formulas!” Peridot screeched, diving after the papers. She scrambled to gather them all up in her arms before dumping them onto the table and furiously working to organize them.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Steven winced and slowly turned to face Pearl, offering her a nervous smile.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>She stood with her arms crossed, a disappointed frown on her face. “You shouldn’t be in the barn,” she said. “It could be dangerous.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“But I can help,” he insisted. “And the barn is super safe, nothing bad is going to happ—.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Just then on the other side of the barn, Spinel yanked something out from one of the precariously balanced heaps. It shook before collapsing in an avalanche of sharp metals and plastic. When the dust settled, Spinel poked her head out of the sea of materials, an apologetic look on her face.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Oops,” she said. “My bad. ‘Guess that fish was important.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>A moment later, Amethyst appeared from the rubble, a large animatronic bass in her arms and a satisfied grin on her face. “Worth it,” she said as she picked scraps of metal out of her hair.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Steven let out a nervous chuckle. “So, can I hel—”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Go outside, Steven,” Pearl said.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Steven visibly deflated, “Okay,” he said, dragging his feet as he left the barn.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Pearl made sure that Steven had completely left the barn before turning her focus back onto Peridot and the plans for the drill. She suppressed a groan at the thought of having to work with Peridot. Of all the gems to be paired up with, why did she have to get the most insufferable one? </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Have you made any progress on the drill?” she asked, approaching the table. She peered over Peridot’s shoulders to get a better view of the schematics.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Peridot pulled the documents closer to herself, obstructing Pearl’s view of them. “Your assistance is not needed,” she said. “You’re free to leave.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Pearl’s eye twitched and she took a moment to compose herself before speaking, “We’ll finish sooner if we work together.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Peridot gave her an incredulous look, “A Peridot working </span>
  <em>
    <span>with </span>
  </em>
  <span>a Pearl,” she said, shaking her head. “Ha! The mere thought is absurd.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Pearl clenched her jaw and bit back an insult. They needed Peridot to stop the cluster, they needed Peridot to stop the cluster, they nee—</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re the one who’s absurd, tiny.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Pearl looked up to see Bismuth leaning against the chalkboard, an easy-going smile on her face. She walked over and placed a hand on her shoulder.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Pearl is one of the smartest gems I know,” she said. “You’re lucky to be working with her.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Pearl flushed at the compliment, her previous anger fizzling out.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I highly doubt that,” Peridot said dismissively, turning her attention back to her work. “She’s just a Pearl.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Bismuth,” Pearl greeted, ignoring Peridot’s jab. “I thought you were busy organizing the piles with the others.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I decided to take a break,” Bismuth said. “Looks like you could use one too.” she gestured to Peridot with a slight tilt of her head.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Pearl smirked. “Yes,” she agreed, glancing at Peridot. “My work has been rather…  </span>
  <em>
    <span>annoying</span>
  </em>
  <span>.” </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, what do you say we go for a stroll?” Bismuth asked. “I’ve been meaning to visit the old forge.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“The forge? I haven’t been there in thousands of years!” Pearl exclaimed, clasping her hands together as she recalled the pleasant afternoons she used to spend in the forge. She would ramble on and on about their latest victory while Bismuth produced stacks upon stacks of swords, axes, lances, and other weapons essential for the rebellion. She would love to go there again, but the table littered with blueprints made her hesitate. “Oh, but I should probably stay here to work on the drill.”</span>
  <span>
    <br/>
  </span>
  <span>
    <br/>
  </span>
  <span>“C’mon Pearl,” Bismuth said. “It’ll be fun. Garnet, Twoie and Amethyst already agreed to go.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes, please leave,” Peridot agreed.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Pearl sent her a glare. “</span>
  <em>
    <span>Well</span>
  </em>
  <span>, I suppose a small break wouldn’t hurt,” she said. “And it would be nice to see the forge again. It’ll be just like old times.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Bismuth smiled. “To the forge!”</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Steven watched as Twoie and the gems headed out, their conversation becoming harder to discern as their figures faded into the distance. He plastered on a disinterested look and hummed a random tune until he was sure they were gone. Now was his chance to help. He leapt up from his spot on the ground, brushing the grass off his clothes and headed towards the barn.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>He skidded to a halt, heels digging into the ground as he nearly crashed into someone. Jasper stood, arms crossed in the entrance of the barn. He tried to go around her, but she moved to block his path.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“My Twoie doesn’t want you inside of the barn,” she said.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>He frowned. Of course, Twoie wouldn’t leave unless he was sure Steven couldn’t enter the barn. He took a step to the right. Jasper mirrored his actions. He moved left, so did Jasper.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>He sighed. “Fine, I leave.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>He took a few steps away from the barn and began to whistle. The second he didn’t feel Jasper’s gaze on him he turned on his heel and made a dash for the entrance. Just a few more steps. Almost there…  </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>A pair of hands plucked him off the ground right before he could step inside. He squirmed in Jasper’s hold for a while before giving up and going still. Sneaking past Jasper wasn’t going to work.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Can you </span>
  <em>
    <span>please</span>
  </em>
  <span> let me in?” he pleaded. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Jasper shook her head. “No.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Why not?”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“You could get hurt. My Twoie said you’re at a fragile stage of development.” she gently placed him on the ground. “You’re soft and squishy.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Steven pouted. He was sick of everybody treating him like he was made of glass.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“But I can make bubbles and shields!” he insisted “I’m not going to get hurt.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Jasper didn’t respond and continued to guard the entrance. There was no way he was getting past her. Jasper was just too good of a guard, but maybe he didn’t have to… </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, what if you guard me while I’m in the barn?” he suggested. “That way I can help while staying safe.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Jasper was silent, but seemed to be considering his request.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Unless…  you don’t think you can keep me safe?” he innocently asked.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Jasper frowned and Steven mentally cheered.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>The rocky, grey mountainside was devoid of any life. The cracked and dry ground made it impossible for anything to flourish and any wildlife they ran into was small and tough. In short, it was uncomfortably hot and it only got worse the closer they got to the forge. Twoie wiped the sweat from his brow and soldiered on, huffing and puffing as the steep incline of their chosen trail grew even steeper.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I can do this,” he whispered to himself as his legs burned in protest. Had climbing the mountain been this difficult the first time around? He leaned against a rugged wall in an attempt to catch his breath and decided that no, it hadn’t.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“You doing alright there, dude?” Amethyst asked, backtracking to him. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Garnet, Pearl, and Bismuth continued onward too engrossed in their conversation to notice. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Just give me a second,” he said as his breathing stabilized. He pushed himself away from the support of the wall and made a conscious effort to take long strides in order to catch up with the others. Amethyst kept pace with him and shot him the occasional worried glance.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I dunno man,” she said after he stumbled and nearly collapsed on the ground. “You're not looking so good. Maybe you should go back…”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>He made a dismissive gesture with his hand, waving her concerns off. “I’m fine, </span>
  <em>
    <span>really</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” he insisted. “I’m just a little tired.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Amethyst gnawed at her bottom lip and looked straight ahead. “Is this because of…” </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie paused mid step before continuing like nothing had happened. “Yeah,” he said, his voice barely above a whisper. “I think so.”</span>
  <span>
    <br/>
    <br/>
  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>There was no point in denying or ignoring the problem. Twoie didn’t have much time left and his body knew it. No matter how much rest he got he was always yawning and rubbing the sleep out his eyes, his body was constantly aching, and a faint but persistent headache followed him wherever he went. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>He tried not to think about it too much and instead focused all his energy on preventing the emergence of the cluster. For the most part it worked and he was able to ignore his problems, but as he struggled to climb even the slightest incline his degrading health became glaringly obvious.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Everything’s going to be fine,” Amethyst said, sounding more confident than she looked. “I mean, we already got Peridot working on the time thingy and with Pearl helping her out I’m sure they’ll figure something out.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie nodded, but chose not to comment. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Truthfully, he suspected that even with Peridot’s help, Pearl wouldn’t be able to save him. He didn’t doubt their brilliance or their ability to repair the time piece, but fixing something that intricate would take time, something he was quickly running out of. Even if they halted the construction of the drill and focused solely on the timepiece he doubted it would make much of a difference, not that he would ever say that outloud.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Thankfully, he had a plan that would guarantee earth’s safety, but a part of him was still holding out hope that Peridot and Pearl would be able to help him so he chose to do nothing for the time being.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Eventually, after what felt like a lifetime they arrived at the entrance of the forge. With a plain grey surface and no defining features, it wasn’t initially impressive, but Twoie knew that hidden behind the layers of rock was something truly amazing. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Bismuth stood in front of the ordinary mountainside wall, her gem glowing softly at first but quickly growing brighter and brighter until it exploded in a burst of light and color. The slab responded to her gemstone, shaking and rumbling before parting and revealing a grand entrance that managed to impress even Twoie who had seen it many times before.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Wow,” Amethyst said as she inspected the entrance.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Pearl enthusiastically clapped, excitement twinkling in her eyes. “Bravo, Bismuth!”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>The inside of the forge was even hotter than the outside and Twoie found himself constantly having to wipe the sweat from his eyes. The others, being gems, were completely unbothered by the shift in temperature and happily watched as Bismuth gave a short tour of her workstation. Twoie stood at the edges of the room, distancing himself from the lavafall in the center of it all.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Bismuth paced around the room in search of something. “Is it still here?” she wondered aloud. Her eyes lit up at the sight of a small chest. “Aha! Yes!” she rummaged through the chest. “Here, something to pack a little extra punch.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Bismuth pulled a pair of brass knuckles from the chest and tossed them over to Garnet who immediately summoned her gauntlets and attached it to them. She stared at her upgraded weapon in admiration, a satisfied grin on her face.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Bismuth handed a forked attachment to Pearl. “And why don’t you try a trident?” </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Pearl eagerly accepted the gift and wasted no time in summoning and placing it on her spear. She gushed over the weapon, pulling it close to her body in a sort of embrace.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, Bismuth, you shouldn’t have,” she said.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“It's no big deal,” Bismuth said. “I was working on them since before—” she went quiet for a moment, a far away look in her eyes. She shook her head and continued on like nothing had happened. “Well, may as well give them to you now.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“It was worth the wait,” Garnet said.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, it's a pleasure doing Bismuth with you.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Even though he had hear it a million times before Twoie couldn’t help but crack a smile at her corny joke. It never got old.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Don’t think I’ve forgotten about you, deep cut,” Bismuth told Amethyst. “You have a whip, right?”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Amethyst summoned her weapon in response and handed it over to Bismuth who immediately rushed over to one of her workbenches. She came back a few moments later and handed Amethyst the modified weapon.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Aww yeah, baby,” Amethyst said as she tested out her whip. It’s added spiked flails cut through the air with ease. “Bismuth’s the best!”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Bismuth barked out a laugh at Amethyst’s enthusiasm, her smile dimming somewhat when she locked gazes with him.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t really have anything for a shield,” she told him.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Don’t worry about it,” Twoie said, summoning two spiked bubbles around his fists. “I can take care of myself.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Bismuth’s smile dropped. “Right, you're a powerful Diamond,” she said. “Good job on taking down Jasper by the way. She seems really… </span>
  <em>
    <span>loyal</span>
  </em>
  <span> to you now, always following your orders and bending over backwards to make you comfortable.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s not like that,” Twoie quickly said. “I don’t force Jasper to do anything she doesn’t want to, she’s a free gem.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, it’s not Twoie’s fault that Jasper worships him,” Amethyst said. “And if it weren’t for him she’d still be trying to destroy us.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I guess that’s true,” Bismuth conceded. “I just find it strange that a </span>
  <em>
    <span>free </span>
  </em>
  <span>gem salutes you. She’s always following you around, opening doors, acting like your bodyguard… bowing to you.” </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie winced. He didn’t like what Bismuth was getting at, though he could blame her for coming to that conclusion. As much as he hated to admit it, everything she said was true. Jasper really </span>
  <em>
    <span>did </span>
  </em>
  <span>follow him around like a shadow, and in the rare instances she wasn’t with him she was watching over Steven. He was working on getting her to stop bowing and saluting with limited success. At the very least, she had started calling him Twoie.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Twoie doesn’t force her to,” Pearl said. “She mistakenly believes that Twoie is Pink Diamond and refuses to listen to anyone who tells her otherwise.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“She’s stubborn,” Garnet agreed. “Changing her mind is… difficult.” </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Bismuth stared at the gems for a moment, then shifted her gaze over to him. Her eyes narrowed as she studied his face in search of something. Finally, after a few tense moments in which Twoie held her suspicious gaze, Bismuth backed off.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I guess that makes sense,” she said. “You’re…  Twoie not Pink Diamond, </span>
  <em>
    <span>right</span>
  </em>
  <span>?”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Right,” Twoie said, furiously shaking his head in agreement.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Bismuth’s shoulders relaxed and they continued to explore the forge for a while before heading back. Everything seemed fine, although Twoie couldn’t help but shake the feeling that someone was watching him. He glanced at Bismuth in those moments, but she was always looking away and eventually Twoie ignored those feelings. He was just being paranoid.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Once inside the barn, Steven decided to approach Spinel first since helping Peridot didn’t work out last time. Spinel was hard at work sifting through a small pile of broken telephones, TVs, and kitchen appliances; occasionally ripping out useful wiring and other valuable materials.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Hiya, Steven,” Spinel greeted as she placed a microwave down. “I thought you weren’t allowed in the barn?”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Steven flushed, embarrassed at being caught. Did Twoie tell </span>
  <em>
    <span>everybody</span>
  </em>
  <span> not to let him in?</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s fine,” he assured her. “Jasper is here to make sure I don’t get hurt.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Behind him Jasper grunted and sent Spinel a nod as a greeting.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Spinel tilted her head and rubbed her chin, her gaze darting between him and Jasper. “Works for me,” she said, shrugging. “So, you wanna play a game?”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Actually</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” he said. “I was wondering if you needed any help. I’m pretty good at organizing stuff.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>He moved to grab something from one of the massive piles surrounding them, but Spinel reeled him back, literally. She shapeshifted her arm into a fishing hook, attached it to the back of his shirt and dragged him away from the pile.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Careful, Stevie,” she warned. “It’s pretty easy to get one of those to come crashing down. Maybe we should go outside. I wouldn’t want you to get hurt.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“No, no, it’s okay,” he said. “I’ll be careful. I promise.” he eyed the mountain of electronics and gently pulled a small radio out from the bottom. He proudly presented it to Spinel. “See? I’m fi—”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>The pile rumbled before toppling over, heaps of electronics raining down at him. Jasper tackled him in an embrace, taking the brunt of the attack and protecting him with her body.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Are you alright?” Jasper asked, searching him for any scrapes of bruises.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>He nodded and covered his face with his hands as heat rose to his cheeks. This wasn’t turning out how he wanted. How was he supposed to prove himself if he kept messing up?</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, it’s okay,” Spinel said, placing a hand on his shoulder. “Don’t worry about the mess. I’ll have it cleaned up in a jiffy.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>He pulled his hands away from his face and frowned at the floor. “It’s not that,” he said. “I really wanted to help with the cluster, but everything I did just ended up messing things up. I don’t know anything about building a drill and I’m not smart enough to help Peridot and Pearl.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Just because you're not good at those things doesn’t mean you can’t help in other ways,” she said. “And I think I have an idea. Look over there.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Steven followed her gaze over to a small corner in the barn where Peridot stood hunched over the table, pencil in hand. She grumbled to herself as she yanked a paper off the table, balled it up and threw onto a slowly growing pile of discarded schematics.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I already tried helping Peridot, but I don’t kn—”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Spinel made a disapproving noise as she wagged her finger in the air. “Y’know, there is more than just one way of helping someone,” she said sagely before a mischievous grin spread across her face. “Sometimes in order to work hard you need to play hard first.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>At some point during their trek down the mountain, Twoie managed to pull Amethyst aside. They walked ahead of the group in silence as he collected his thoughts.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“What’s up, dude?” Amethyst asked. “You wanted to tell me something?</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>The feeling of someone’s gaze made the hairs on his neck stand up. Twoie glanced over his shoulder, but Bismuth was laughing and playfully shoving Garnet.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Has Bismuth said anything about me?” he asked.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Not really,” Amethyst said. She glanced back at the joking group and in a lower voice asked, “Is this about what happened in the forge? It got pretty intense back there. I mean I get that Jasper’s still kinda brainwashed because of Homeworld, but that’s not your fault.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Maybe I’m just being paranoid,” he said. “But I feel like Bismuth’s watching me. I think she still believes I’m Pink Diamond.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“What? That’s crazy. We already told her that wasn’t true. Why would Pink Diamond disguise herself as a human anyways?”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>He shrugged. “I know it doesn’t make any sense, but in my time she didn’t believe me when I told her I wasn’t Rose Quartz. She thought I was lying to everybody and with Jasper treating me like a Diamond…”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Amethyst grimaced. “Right, you said she went all psycho and tried to shatter you. You want me to talk to her about it?”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie considered it for a moment before shaking his head. “No, it’s fine. I’m probably just imagining things.”</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Twoie took in a deep breath, savoring the crisp air of the countryside. The forge had been hot and humid and he was glad to be back even if it meant having to get back to work. The group of gems following behind him chattered happily amongst themselves, the trip having been successful in relaxing them.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>The barn soon became visible and Twoie increase his speed only to stop at the sight of the empty entrance where Jasper should have been. His eyes darted to the field where he had last seen Steven. It was empty, no one in sight. It was probably fine. Maybe Steven had gone home?</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>A blood curdling scream filled the air. Twoie charged ahead of the group and headed straight for the barn, heart pounding as a million scenarios in which Steven got injured unfolded in his mind. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>From above the ceiling beams, a small screaming mass fell on top of him, knocking him to the ground and causing him to hit his head. He blinked the spots out of his vision and readied himself for a fight only to be greeted by the sight of terrified Peridot.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Thank the stars! You're back!” she clung to his shirt like a lifeline, her wide and frantic eyes darting around the barn. “You have to save me!”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Save you?” he questioned, heartbeat picking up at the panic in her voice. “Did something happen? Where’s Steven?”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>The sound of creaking wood and hurried footsteps grew louder. Peridot pulled at her hair.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s too late!” she shouted. “They’ve found me!”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Found you? What are you talking ab—”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>A small orange blur tackled Peridot off his chest and sent her flying. Twoie shot up off the floor, summoned a spiked bubble and rushed to fend of her attacker only to stop dead in his tracks. Pinning a trembling Peridot to the wall was an orange, cackling Steven.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Not a second later another Steven appeared, this one a mix of pink and white and with a large goofy grin painted on. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Aww, shucks,” he said in an unnaturally high-pitched voice. “I can’t believe you found her first.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Finally, what appeared to be the real Steven walked in, slightly panting.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re really good at this Jasper,” he said, leaning against a wall. “Are you sure you’ve never played tag before?”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie blinked as he watched the scenario unfold. Amethyst, Garnet, Pearl, and Bismuth burst in a moment later, weapons in hand.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Is that…  </span>
  <em>
    <span>Jasper</span>
  </em>
  <span>?” Amethyst asked, dispelling her whip. She squinted at the orange Steven.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Jasper turned at the sound of her name, dropping a shaking Peridot onto the floor who immediately scrambled away to hide.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I won,” Jasper said, her gruff voice clashing with her short stature.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie’s mouth fell open at the oddly terrifying sight. He dispelled the spike bubble still surrounding his fist.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“What’s going on here?” Pearl asked.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“We were taking a break!” Spinel cheerful explained.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I was being tortured!” Peridot shouted at the same time, peering out from behind a small pile of clothes.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie merely shook his head, a small grin on his face as he watched Peridot bicker with the three other Steven’s who were all trying to get her to shapeshift into Steven.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Despite not winning the match of Steven Tag, he was happy to see that Peridot had been making progress on stopping the cluster. Her brows were drawn together in thought as she filled page after page with new improvements for the drill. All that running around was successful in giving her new ideas, although Peridot still insisted that she didn’t have any fun.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Steven stretched out across the field and let out a small yawn. The sky slowly turned a soft orange as the sun dipped into the horizon. His eyes stayed close a little longer every time he blinked and he likely would have fallen asleep if it weren’t for Bismuth taking a seat next to him.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t think it’ll ever stop being beautiful,” she said.</span>
  <span></span>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>
  <span>Steven sat up and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. “What?”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“The sunset,” Bismuth said, her eyes never leaving the horizon. “It reminds me of what I’m fighting for.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Steven followed her gaze and was silent as he admired the sight. Bismuth was right, it was beautiful.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Let’s go for a walk,” Bismuth suddenly said, rising from her spot. “I’ve been meaning to talk to you about something…  important.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Steven blinked, slightly taken aback. No one ever wanted to talk to him about </span>
  <em>
    <span>anything </span>
  </em>
  <span>important. He quickly stood and followed after. They walked in silence for a while, the barn growing smaller and smaller until it was a dot in the distance. Still, Steven didn’t dare say anything in fear that Bismuth would change her mind and decide not to tell him anything.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I know it’s you,” Bismuth said. “You can drop the act.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Steven glanced around in confusion, trying to decipher what she meant. “What are you talking about?”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>She scoffed. “I can’t believe you're still trying to fool me, Rose. Or should I say Pink?”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Steven’s eyes widened. “I’m not—”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Right, sorry,” she shook her head and let out a bitter laugh. “You go by Steven now, or was it Twoie? How many names</span>
  <em>
    <span> do </span>
  </em>
  <span>you have?”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m not my mom </span>
  <em>
    <span>or</span>
  </em>
  <span> Pink Diamond,” he insisted. “I’m Steven.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Her eyes narrowed into slits. “So you just so happened to have Homeworld gems working for you, huh? They don’t even try to escape. I bet there really even isn’t a cluster. Just what are you having us build? And how stupid do you think I am?!”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t think y—”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“You get a new look, a brand new name, and all of a sudden you got everybody following your orders. Well, not me.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Bismuth took slow, purposeful steps toward him, closing the gap between them. Steven stood frozen and could only watch in horror as Bismuth turned her hand into a sharp blade.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Her features darkened. “You may have everybody else fooled, but I know it’s still you, Rose.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>She swung at him, sharp metal slicing through the air. Without even thinking, Steven summoned his shield and just barely avoided being cut in half.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Wait, Bismuth! This is just a big misunderstanding!”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Bismuth ignored him and sent another attack his way. He managed to block it with his shield, but the force of the hit sent him flying, his body skidding across the ground. Steven stood up, shifting all his weight onto his non injured leg.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m not Rose Quartz! Please, you have to bel—”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Liar! You say you’re not Rose, but you proudly summon her shield!”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>She ran up to him and swung again, and again, and again. Each attack was stronger than the last, but his shield was just as strong and withstood the blows. He wouldn’t be able to keep this up forever. Twoie and the gems were still at the barn, too far away to be of any help. His arms shook as Bismuth landed another blow on his shield. He needed to do something now.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>A memory danced at the edge of his vision. Twoie almost attacked Jasper when he thought Peridot was in danger. At the time Steven had not commented on it, but the spiked bubble that Twoie had summoned was now the only thing on his mind. He couldn’t defend forever and he was quickly getting tired. If he wanted to survive he needed to attack.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>He leapt away from Bismuth, putting some distance between them and giving himself some time to rest. He stared at his hands which were holding up the shield. Even if he </span>
  <em>
    <span>wanted</span>
  </em>
  <span> to attack Bismuth, he had know idea how to make spiked bubbles. He glanced at the barely visible barn, then at the rapidly approaching Bismuth. Even if he ran now, he wouldn't be able to outrun Bismuth.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Stop running and fight me!” Bismuth yelled, barreling toward him.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>She pulled the deadly weapon back and prepared to unleash one final and devastating attack, but in doing so she left her body wide open for an attack. This was his chance! It was now or never. Throwing caution to the wind, Steven dropped his shield, focused all his energy into summoning two spiked bubbles, and swung at her with all the strength he had left.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A puff of colored smoke filled the air. Bismuth’s rainbow colored gemstone dropped onto the soft grass. Steven stared at his hands in shock, the sharp spikes reflecting the orange hue of the sunset. His gaze fell to Bismuth’s gemstone, then to the far away barn. He wordlessly bent down, bubbled her, and began his long journey back to the others.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0024"><h2>24. The Decision</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Twoie decides to make a call.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>The sun was setting into the horizon and a few stars could be seen in the darkening sky. Twoie suppressed a yawn as he sorted through another pile of scrap metal, his movements slow and half-hearted. It was getting late, but there was still work that needed to be done.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie stared at a warped plate of metal he was holding trying to decide whether it was salvageable or not. After sorting through hundreds of similar pieces it was becoming difficult to tell. In the end, he shrugged and tossed it into the salvageable pile. He grabbed another piece from the large pile and began to inspect it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You're </span>
  <em>
    <span>still </span>
  </em>
  <span>working?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He jumped, dropping the scrap metal. It clattered onto the ground. He turned and was met with the sight of Amethyst. She was leaned against a large pile of broken furniture, a small frown on her face.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Amethyst,” he greeted while moving to pick up the fallen piece of scrap metal. “I was just finishing up.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She plucked the material out of his hands and carelessly threw it onto one of the many large piles that littered the barn. “Dude, you’ve been at this for hours,” she said. “Even</span>
  <em>
    <span> Peridot</span>
  </em>
  <span> is taking a break.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She gestured to the less cluttered side of the barn with a small tilt of her head. There, seated next to Peridot was Garnet of all gems. Even more surprising was the half-smile on Peridot’s face. She snapped her fingers and began to widely gesture with her hands as if she just made a grand discovery. Twoie smiled at the sight, glad to see that some of Peridot’s cold exterior was slowly being chipped away.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It </span>
  <em>
    <span>is</span>
  </em>
  <span> getting late,” he agreed, sparing a glance at the darkening sky. He stretched out his limbs and let out a yawn. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Amethyst nodded. “You should try and get some sleep.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’ll take a break,” he said. “I need to take Steven back home anyway.” he scanned the grassy field where Steven had been last, frowning when he failed to find him. “Have you seen him?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She pointed to an empty spot on the field. “He’s right outside….” she scanned the field again, eyebrows squishing together as she came to the same realization he had. Steven was missing. “Weird. He was there a second ago.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie’s gaze darted around the barn in search of a poof of black hair or a splash of red, but found nothing. Peridot and Garnet were seated on the table near the chalkboard deep in a discussion, Pearl was immersed in a book and sat close to them, Spinel had roped Jasper into some sort of staring contest, and a faint outline of Lapis was visible resting on top of a silo not far from the barn. The only other person missing was… </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie’s heart sank like a stone. “Where’s Bismuth?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Amethyst’s head whipped around to every corner of the barn, eyes widening when she failed to find her. “She’s not here,” she said. “You don’t think…”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“We </span>
  <em>
    <span>need </span>
  </em>
  <span>to find Steven,” Twoie said. “Check the barn again. I’ll go look outside.” he didn’t wait for an answer and took off to go search the fields.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He circled the area outside the barn, widening his search when he failed to find Steven. Still, he found nothing but long empty stretches of grass and flower patches. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Steven!” he called, pausing for a second as he waited for a response.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The inside of the barn was now a flurry of activity as everybody joined the search for Steven. There was still no sign of Bismuth. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Steven!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Growing desperate, Twoie threw himself up in the air and scanned the vast fields below. Far away from the barn Twoie could make out a small blob slowly making its way toward them. He brought himself down from the sky, taking off in the direction of the figure as soon as his feet touched the ground. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was far too short to be Bismuth meaning it had to be Steven, but something was wrong. He was walking far too slowly. Twoie pumped his legs to their limit, ignoring the burning sensation as he propelled himself toward Steven. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He halted to a stop, nearly falling over in shock as Steven came into view. His face was littered with small scratches and splotches of dirt. He was limping, leaning most of his weight onto his right foot. His lips were turned downward in a deep frown, eyes shiny with unshed tears as he stared at the bubble cradled in his hands.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>No, no, no. His stomach twisted itself into knots as he stared at the multi-colored gemstone floating harmlessly in the pink sphere—It was Bismuth. Guilt pierced through him like a knife as he recalled his earlier conversation with Amethyst. He should have done more, watched Steven more closely, but it was too late. He had failed. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven finally took notice of him, sadness and shame flashing across his eyes as he pulled the bubble closer to him in a poor attempt at hiding what had happened. The gestures and emotions were familiar to Twoie. Hadn't he done the same thing in his time? </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He still remembered the trip home from the forge—how his foot stung from the sizzling of the heated floor, how his heart hammered against his chest as he scooped Bismuth’s gemstone off the ground, how devastated the gems had been when he told them of what Bismuth had tried to do. It was an awful experience he’d hoped Steven would never have to deal with.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Twoie…” his voice cracked with emotion. His gaze darted between the bubbled gemstone and the ground. “I didn’t want to… she wouldn’t listen…”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie gently took the pink bubble away from Steven and engulfed him in a fierce hug, pressing a gentle kiss to his forehead to heal most of his visible injuries.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It’s not your fault,” he said.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“She thought I was mom,” Steven muttered into his shoulder. “Because I had her shield and her ge—“</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You’re not her,” he said. A memory of a pink version of himself flashed in his mind. “You’re Steven.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven nodded into his shoulder and said nothing.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>The majority of the trip back was spent in silence. Twoie cradled the bubble containing Bismuth with one hand and held Steven’s hand with another. Steven’s leg was healed, but he still walked at a snail’s pace, slowing down even more as they approached their destination. Even though the barn must have been thrown into chaos with Steven’s disappearance, Twoie did not rush him, giving him time to process the situation before he had to face the gems.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven stopped a few feet away from the entrance of the barn. The sounds of frantic searching and clattering metal filled the cool night air. No one had seen them yet. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“In your time,” Steven began, pausing as he collected his thoughts. “Did Bismuth…”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It didn’t happen exactly the same way, but…  yeah.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven turned his gaze to the pink sphere. “Is she going to be okay?” he asked, his features scrunching up in worry. “We’re not going to keep her trapped forever, are we? What she did was wrong, but I don’t want her t—”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“She just needs some time to cool off and think,” he said, giving Steven’s hand a small squeeze. “Don’t worry. I consider her a good friend in the future.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven’s shoulders sagged in relief.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl rushed out of the barn when she caught sight of them. “There you are!” she cried, pulling Steven into an embrace. She frowned at the caked dirt still present on Steven’s face. “What happened to you?” she asked as she inspected him for any injuries.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie did most of the explaining, not wanting to burden Steven by forcing him to relive the event. Steven did briefly chime in to explain how he managed to poof Bismuth without any weapons. Apparently, he had learned to summon spiked bubbled all by himself, an impressive feat that took Twoie by surprise. He didn’t learn how to do that until he was much older.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The gems who were aware of Bismuth’s similar past actions were not that surprised at the news of what she had tried to do. Jasper was the only one who took real issue with Bismuth’s actions, going as far to suggest they shatter her—an idea that was quickly shut down by everybody else.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>In the end it was decided that Bismuth would remain bubbled so she could have time to think about her actions while everybody else processed the situation. Steven and Twoie were both sent home to rest while the others continued to work on the drill through the dark hours of the night.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>After many fitful hours of twisting, turning, and staring up at the ceiling Twoie leapt out of bed and got dressed. It was still night, but memories of past traumatic events kept him from sleeping and he was becoming restless. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The incident with Bismuth at the barn had been an unpleasant reality check and forced him to reevaluate his plans. If comparatively small events like Bismuth’s attack on Steven were resistant to change then the bigger events like the Diamonds were most likely impossible to avoid. In order to make meaningful changes to the timeline, Twoie would have to make risky moves.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was with this in mind that he grabbed a small multi-colored object, shoved it deep into his pocket and tiptoed out of the temple, taking care not to wake Steven who lay peacefully asleep in the safety of his bed. He decided to ride Lion to the barn seeing as it was much more discreet than taking the warp pad.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>One roar and a portal hop later, Twoie was back on the outskirts of the barn. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Thanks buddy,” he told Lion as he gave him an affectionate pat on the head. Lion yawned in response, curled up into a ball on a particularly soft patch of grass and promptly fell asleep.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Like a shadow, Twoie clung to the walls of the barn and used the darkness of night as cover. Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl didn’t know he was here and he intended to keep it that way. If they knew what he had planned they would never let him go through with it, but Twoie was determined to change the future for the better, no matter the cost.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His heart pounded against his chest as he got closer to the table where Peridot was diligently working away. The schematics for the drill were pushed to the side while she focused her attention onto the timepiece that had brought him to the past in the first place. He moved to approach her only to freeze at the arrival of Pearl. He pressed himself closer to the wall and into the shadows, not even daring to breathe in fear of being discovered.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl made some minor adjustments to a formula written in big neat letters on the chalkboard, had a brief exchange with Peridot, and finally sauntered back off to the other side of the barn. Twoie let out a sigh of relief and allowed himself to breath again.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A hand firmly grasped his shoulder. “Gotcha.”  His pulse raced and his muscles stiffed. He was spun around, a million excuses already on the tip of his tongue only to be greeted by the friendly face of Spinel. “As much as I love hide-and-seek, you should be sleeping mister,” Spinel said, lightly jabbing him in the chest with her finger. “I’m</span>
  <em>
    <span> pretty</span>
  </em>
  <span> sure humans need to sleep or else they’ll die.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie made a shushing motion with his finger, head whipping around the barn searching for signs that anyone had heard. “Lower your voice,” he whispered. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Unfortunately, Spinel did exactly the opposite. She tilted her head in confusion and made a big show of cupping her hand against her head. “What?” she said, voice loud but not quite shouting. “Speak up, I can’t hear you.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie bit his lip. This was bad any second now the gems would gather to see what all the commotion was abo—</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“That’s it,” he said as a lightbulb went off in his head. He grabbed Spinel by the shoulder’s. “Do you think you can go inside and keep everyone distracted?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Her eyes lit up. “Distraction is my middle name,” she proudly proclaimed. Without another word, she raced back into the barn. “Who wants to see how many chainsaws I can juggle?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The sound of many chainsaws simultaneously being turned on was followed by frantic footsteps and the familiar worried squawking of Pearl. “Where on earth did you get five chainsaws?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Woah, go Spinel!” Amethyst encouraged. “More chainsaws! More chainsaws!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Amethyst!”</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>With the gems distracted Twoie approached Peridot who was so engrossed in her work that she failed to notice the chaos unfolding around her.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Peridot,” he called, his gaze darting back to Spinel and the others. She had summoned two more chainsaws and Garnet had finally decided to involve herself in the situation. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’m busy,” she said, not even bothering to look up from the timepiece she was tinkering with.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I need you to come with me.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Peridot sighed, gently placing the timepiece on the table. “What now?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’ll explain later,” he said. “Just follow me.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Peridot sent him an irritated look but did as she was told. Together, they slipped out of the barn undetected. Now all they needed to do was find Jasp— </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie stumbled and nearly crashed into someone.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“My Dia—my Twoie?” Jasper quickly corrected herself. She was patrolling the outside of the barn.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie place a finger over his lips and motioned for her to follow which she did without any hesitation. The sounds of buzzing metal and chaos faded into the background as the small group walked farther and farther away from the barn.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was only until they were a good enough distance did Twoie allow himself to relax. The small object in his pocket now seemed to way a ton, reminding him that the next part of his plan would be much harder to execute. Twoie abruptly stopped walking and turned to face the two gems who were looking at him expectantly.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Peridot, tell me what are the odds that you will actually be able to fix the timepiece?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“One hundred percent,” she answered without hesitation. “Given enough time I wi—”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“How much time do I have before I’m erased from existence?” he bluntly asked, ignoring the way Jasper’s eyes widened ever so slightly.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“That is… unknown,” she slowly answered. “There are a multitude of factors tha—”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Give me an estimation.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Peridot avoided his gaze. “I… not much time.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Be honest with me,” he continued. “Even if you</span>
  <em>
    <span> do</span>
  </em>
  <span> manage to repair the timepiece before I disappear, what will happen when I go back to the future? I’ve changed enough events that </span>
  <em>
    <span>my </span>
  </em>
  <span>timeline might not even exist anymore.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Peridot remained silent.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie let out a deep sigh. “I’m going to die no matter what happens, aren’t I?</span>
  <span></span>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>
  <span>“I… don’t know,” Peridot admitted. “That appears to be the most likely scenario, but time travel is complicated. There is no telling </span>
  <em>
    <span>what</span>
  </em>
  <span> will happen.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“That’s what I thought,” he said and turned his gaze onto Jasper. “You were both sent to earth on Yellow Diamond’s orders, right?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jasper nodded. “My orders were to eliminate anyone interfering with the cluster.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“And I was supposed to send status reports on the progress of the cluster,” Peridot said.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie reached into his pocket and showed them the small diamond shaped communicator that was originally from his time. It was divided into four colors: pink, yellow, blue, and an almost blinding white. He handed the small device over to Peridot who carefully began to inspect it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Do you think we can use that to contact the Diamonds?” he asked.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’ve never seen a communicator </span>
  <em>
    <span>this</span>
  </em>
  <span> advanced before,” Peridot said, marvelling at the revolutionary piece of technology. The Peridot of his time had spent weeks perfecting the technology, making it as compact and efficient as possible while still maintaining its ridiculous communication range. “You shouldn’t have any problems contacting the Diamonds with this.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Good,” he said. “Because I need you two to get me an audience with Yellow Diamond.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Peridot’s brows scrunched together in confusion and even Jasper struggled to hide the surprise on her face. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I don’t understand,” Peridot said. “You </span>
  <em>
    <span>want </span>
  </em>
  <span>to contact the Diamonds now? After you made me disable all communication capabilities on the handship?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I thought I had more time back then, but things have changed.” he rubbed at his temple in an attempt to soothe his ever present headache. “I need you to call Yellow Diamond.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“And tell her what?” Peridot asked, her voice rising. “That we’ve both horribly failed our respective missions. Are you </span>
  <em>
    <span>trying </span>
  </em>
  <span>to get us shattered?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Tell her that your missions are proceeding as planned,” he said.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Peridot frowned. “But they’re n—”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Don’t tell her we’re working on stopping the cluster and </span>
  <em>
    <span>don’t</span>
  </em>
  <span> tell her about Steven or any of the Crystal Gems. Just let her know that you found Pink Diamond.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Peridot looked like she wanted to protest further, but Jasper snatched the communicator out of her hand before she could. In one swift motion, she pressed the yellow side of the communicator and stood back as it came to life and began to float in the air. It glowed pink, blue, and white before finally settling on a bright yellow. A large diamond screen appeared in front of them. Twoie moved so that he was out of sight and waited.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jasper stood still and Peridot shifted in place as Yellow Pearl’s irritated face appeared on the screen. “This is the Yellow Diamond Control Room.”</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0025"><h2>25. No Going Back</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Yellow Pearl’s cold, flat eyes narrowed at the pair of Homeworld Gems. Her voice came out nasally and irritated, “Who authorized you to make this call?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Peridot took small hesitant steps forward, sparring Twoie one final nervous glance before speaking up, “Well,” she began, shifting her stance. “There were some complications on our missi—”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“That’s no excuse to use the direct Diamond communication channel.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A deep commanding voice called out and silenced everyone in the vicinity. “Pearl.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Yellow Pearl straightened up, her posture becoming almost impossibly rigid. “Yes, my Diamond?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Why is there someone on the Diamond line?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I don’t know,” she sent Jasper and Peridot an annoyed glare. “I was just about to tell the—”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’ll take it from here.” A large yellow hand pulled the screen away from Yellow Pearl and shifted its view. Only the side of Yellow Diamond’s face was visible as her focus was mainly directed at a group of monitors displaying hundreds of continuously scrolling words and images.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“My Diamond,” said both Peridot and Jasper. They straightened up and formed the Diamond salute with their arms.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Peridot’s eyes widened, admiration and dread briefly flashing across them. “Peridot, reporting in.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Yellow Diamond’s gaze remained firmly affixed on her various screens, her fingers occasionally tapping or swiping at something with extreme precision. Twoie couldn’t stop the rush of anxiety shooting up his spine at her cold and annoyed tone, “</span>
  <em>
    <span>Which</span>
  </em>
  <span> Peridot?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Peridot faltered for a moment, but quickly recovered. “Facet 2-F-5-L, Cut 5-X-G. During our ongoing mission on earth Jasper and I stumbled upon somethi—”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Yellow Diamond raised her hand up in a halting motion and Peridot immediately went silent.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“This says you’re behind schedule on your mission to…” An image of the earth appeared on one of her many screens. She finally turned to look at Peridot and Jasper. “How is… the Earth?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It’s… full of… life.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Yellow Diamond’s lips curled back in disgust, “</span>
  <em>
    <span>Organic </span>
  </em>
  <span>life…” her gaze briefly darted over to Jasper whose arms were still locked in a respectful salute. “I see you brought the Jasper I assigned you. Why aren’t you calling from the ship? And why is your communicator unregistered?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“The communication capabilities on the ship were… damaged,” Peridot said.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Yellow Diamond frowned at the news, but thankfully didn’t press the issue any further. “And what is the status of the Cluster?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“The Cluster…” Peridot stiffened as she prepared to lie. Twoie caught her eye and sent her a reassuring look, urging her to continue. “... will emerge shortly. Everything will proceed as planned.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Good,” Yellow Diamond said, her frown disappearing. She turned back to her monitors and resumed her tapping. “We'll finally get some use out of that miserable planet. Thank you for your report. There'll be a ship heading to your location to take you to your next assignments.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Wait!” Peridot exclaimed. “I wouldn't have called just to waste your time with a report.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Still facing the screens, Yellow Diamond turned one lone and annoyed eye toward Peridot. “You already have.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Peridot fumbled and hesitated. “No, I mean… The reason I called... the real reaso—</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“We’ve found Pink Diamond,” Jasper cut in, apparently tired of Peridot stammering.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Yellow Diamond’s reaction was instantaneous. Her body went rigid, the grip on her armrest tightened, and the small group of screens surrounding her vanished. In the corner of the video feed Yellow Pearl could be seen subtly inching away from Yellow Diamond, her face taking on a frightened and pallid look. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Yellow Diamond slowly turned to them. A carefully constructed emotionless facade was plastered on her face, but Twoie had spent enough time around her to see the rage bubbling underneath, waiting to break free at the slightest misstep.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Explain.” Her response was only one word, but it crackled with authority, promising punishment if given an unsatisfactory answer. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jasper stepped forward, next to Peridot who had turned into a shaking mess, and gave a small bow before continuing, “Pink Diamond has been living on earth and wasn’t shattere—”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Enough!” Yellow Diamond shouted, her armrest cracking under the strain of her crushing grip. “I have neither the time nor paticine to indulge in such baseless fantasies. Unless one of you has something of </span>
  <em>
    <span>actual</span>
  </em>
  <span> significance to tell me, then this discussion is over!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Pink Diamond wasn’t shattered,” Jasper repeated in what was a true display of courage. Yellow Diamond sent her a daggered look and opened her mouth to retort, but Jasper continued, “He’s here with us and has requested to speak with you.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Yellow Diamond’s enraged expression shifted into one of surprise before going completely blank. “Pink is…” a flash of emotion spilled out on her face before her features hardened once more. “Put her on.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>That was his cue. Twoie took in a deep breath and put on a brave face. He walked until he was in view of the screen, Jasper and Peridot moving to stand behind him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hey, Yellow…”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Yellow Diamond frowned, disappointment flitting across the surface of her eyes.“What is the meaning of this? Why is my time being wasted on an </span>
  <em>
    <span>organic</span>
  </em>
  <span>?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’m Pink Diamond,” Twoie insisted. “And I can prove it.” He lifted the hem of his shirt up just past his gemstone. It twinkled under the moonlight emphasizing its vibrant color—a shade of pink that was a bit too dark to belong to a regular Rose Quartz. Yellow Diamond seemed to realize this too, inching her face closer to the monitor in an attempt to get a better look.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Although his face was calm, Twoie’s heart hammered against his chest as he waited for Yellow Diamond to react. The rest of his plan hinged on this one moment. How would she take the news? Would she even believe him? </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Thankfully, he didn’t have to wait long for an answer because a moment later Yellow Diamond’s eyes widened, a single breathless word escaping her, </span>
  <em>
    <span>“Pink…”</span>
  </em>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>There were many advantages to sitting atop a silo. For one, it was far enough away from the barn where Lapis didn’t have to interact with the Crystal Gems or her former captors, but close enough where she could easily visit Steven or Twoie is she wanted to. It also ensured that she wouldn’t be bothered by the mess of noise coming from the barn, all while giving her a stunning view of the countryside.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Lapis had spent hours admiring the stars that twinkled overhead, paying special attention to the one she knew was Homeworld, and as a result had a pretty good mental map of the night sky. So when she caught sight of a small shining object that was growing exponentially in size, Lapis knew something was wrong.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It zoomed past her in a red blur and continued forward toward the vast open field. She shot up into the air, memories of her time in the war flashing before her. Hundreds of identical ships landed on the surface that day, each packed with a squadron of Ruby soldiers who immediately went on the offensive. She had been unable to evacuate. Everything devolved into chaos and she was caught in the middle of it all.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>For a moment she was frozen—a prisoner of her own mind, but when no additional ships arrived, when the cries of panicked civilian gems failed to reach her ears, she broke free of her memories and headed straight for the barn. She narrowly avoided crashing into the piles of junk that were gathered inside and was nearly hit by a stray chainsaw. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Uh, did you get a haircut or something?” one of the Crystal Gems asked her. She was an off-color Quartz, an Amethyst. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Lapis hastily smoothed out her windswept hair. “We’re under attack,” she announced, scanning the barn for any sign of Twoie or Steven. She had to warn them. The attention of all the Crystal Gems was now on her. “Homeworld is looking for someone. They’ve sent a roaming eye.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>For a moment no one spoke.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Jasper and Peridot are missing,” Garnet noted.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Everybody turned to the table where Peridot had been diligently working away only to find it abandoned. Jasper was nowhere to be seen. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The room devolved into chaos.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>The bright red color of the ship was easily visible against the dark night sky. Yellow Diamond had sent a squad of Rubies who had been patrolling nearby to go pick him up. They would take Twoie to a nearby colony where he would be allowed to use a warp pad to travel to Homeworld and meet up with his fellow Diamonds. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Even as the ship hovered over them, Twoie couldn’t help but stare at the grass beneath his flip-flops. He would be leaving earth soon and would probably never return. If the Diamonds didn’t end up shattering him then the timeline would erase him soon enough. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Suddenly, he wished he had written a letter for the others instead of leaving without warning. The gems and Steven would be worried about him, but there was no backing out now. Yellow Diamond had seen him, </span>
  <em>
    <span>acknowledged </span>
  </em>
  <span>his identity as Pink Diamond and if he didn’t show up to their meeting then she would no doubt go and search for him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The red ship landed a few feet away from them. Twoie turned to Peridot and Jasper. “You guys should go back to the barn,” he told them. “They still need your help in stopping the cluster. I need to do this by myself.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“No,” Jasper said, voice firm. “I'm going with you.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie opened his mouth to argue, but a single glance at Jasper’s face dried up any words of protest. Her eyes were aflame with stubborn determination and nothing he could say would change her mind. He wanted to be frustrated, upset that his plan had been steered off its original path, but instead he felt touched by her decision to stay by his side until the very end. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I won’t let you be erased,” she said. Of course, Jasper must have been alarmed when she learned of his upcoming demise. She couldn’t</span>
  <em>
    <span> really</span>
  </em>
  <span> protect him from his fate because time wasn’t something you could punch or beat in a fight. Still, because of the aura of confidence Jasper exuded he could almost believe that everything would be fine.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He smiled softly at her. “Thank you, Jasper.” She merely nodded and moved to stand next to him. “Peridot, you need to stay behind and work on the cluster. The others will be worried about me and you should be there to explain the situation to them.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Peridot nodded and hesitated for a moment before bringing her arms together in a salute. “Yes, my Diamond.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie frowned. Ever since Yellow Diamond had accepted his claim of being Pink Diamond, Peridot had been eyeing him nervously. Her posture was rigid and her eyes emotive, fear flitting across their surface. It appeared that she finally believed his status as a Diamond.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You don’t have to call me that,” he gently informed her.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She immediately dropped the salute. “Yes, my Diamond.” she let out a nervous chuckle.  “About those times I called you a clod… I didn’t mea—”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie pulled her into a hug. “Goodbye, Peridot,” he said. She was stiff and uncertain in his hold but didn’t pull away. “I’m going to miss you.” He let her go at the sound of approaching footsteps. She stared at him, an indecipherable expression on her face. “Tell everyone that…  I’ll be fine,” he said before turning and walking over to meet the group of Rubies, Jasper following next to him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Wait!” Peridot called, her voice tinged with desperation. He stopped and looked over his shoulder. “I'll have the timepiece ready when you come back,” she said. “Then you can go back to being an annoying clod… just make sure you come back.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He flashed her the most dazzling grin he could muster, ignoring the way his eyes stung and his throat tightened. “I’ll be back before you know it.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“My Diamond,” four voices greeted at once. Twoie spared Peridot one final glance before turning to face the squad of Ruby gems. It was time for him to leave.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Peridot waited until the roaming eye was nothing but a small dot in the night sky before beginning her trek back to the barn. Her pace slowed as she neared her destination and she found herself coming to a complete stop a few feet from the barn. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A warm yellow glow illuminated the inside of the wooden construct. The timepiece along with the carefully written schematics for the drill lay undisturbed on the table. Everything was exactly as she left it, but she couldn’t shake the feeling that something had changed.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The increasingly frantic discussion of the Crystal Gems reminded her of duty and compelled her move forward. She would have to inform everybody of Jasper and Twoie’s absence, something she suspected would end in disaster. Still, she was entrusted with this task and would fulfill it to the best of her ability. She entered the main area of the barn only to be greeted by a group of bickering gems.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“... shouldn’t have trusted them!” Pearl exclaimed, slamming the end of her spear into the ground. “What are we going to tell Twoie?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Relax, P,” Amethyst said. “We don’t know for sure that it was them. Who knows, maybe they just decided to go on a midnight walk.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Spinel nodded. “If a roaming eye was sent to earth, why would it ignore a building full of gems? What else would it be looking for?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“That is strange behavior for a roaming eye,” Garnet agreed.</span>
</p><p> </p><p><span>“I know what I saw,” Lapis insisted. “It’s too much of a coincidence that a roaming eye just so happens</span> <span>to show up at the same time Jasper and Peridot go missing. We need to go tell Twoie and Steven.” she huffed, turned on her heel, and proceeded to crash right into Peridot. Lapis stumbled and nearly fell, but Peridot steadied her and managed to keep them both from tumbling onto the ground.</span></p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl yanked Peridot forward and pressed the spear against her throat. Peridot stepped backwards, trying to distance herself from the deadly weapon only to walk right into Lapis who had her arms crossed. “Where’s Jasper?” Pearl demanded, bringing the tip of the spear dangerously close to her face. “How did you contact Homeworld?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Woah, chill out, P,” Amethyst said, rushing over to pull the spear back. “I’m pretty sure this is all a misunderstanding. Even if Peridot </span>
  <em>
    <span>wanted</span>
  </em>
  <span> to contact Homeworld, there’s no way she actually could. We disabled communications on the handship, remember?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I </span>
  <em>
    <span>saw</span>
  </em>
  <span> a roaming eye,” Lapis said. “And roaming eyes don’t appear unless they have a reason to. They were </span>
  <em>
    <span>called </span>
  </em>
  <span>here.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>All eyes turned to Peridot in search of an explanation. “I didn’t call the roaming eye,” she said. “Twoie did.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl’s spear pressed against her throat. “You're lying! Twoie would nev—”</span>
  <span>
    <br/>
    <br/>
  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He contacted Yellow Diamond.” The sheer absurdity of her statement was enough to stun the small group into silence. “Twoie is on his way to Homeworld,” Peridot continued, ignoring the surprised cries of some of the gems. “The roaming eye was sent to retrieve him and Jasper. He wanted me to let you know that he would be fine.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The spear clattered onto the ground.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>The roaming eye ship was full of familiar faces. Doc, Leggy, Navy, and Eyeball split their time between steering the ship and gushing over their latest passengers. Twoie was polite for the most part, answering any questions they had and respectfully accepting their praise, but his mind was preoccupied with thoughts of the Diamonds and their upcoming reunion.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Thankfully, Jasper noticed his reluctance to chat and kept the Rubies occupied by recounting some of her more action-packed stories from her time in the war. Apparently, she was a bit of a celebrity among warrior gems who viewed her as the perfect Quartz soldier from earth. Their enthusiastic chatter continued even as they arrived at their destination.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The colony was relatively small in comparison to Homeworld, but it made efficient use of its space and was densely packed with dozens of spires, arenas, and military bases. The small group of Rubies insisted on escorting them all the way to the warp pad under the excuse of guarding them, but really they were just reluctant to part ways with either of them even going as far as to offer them a tour of the colony.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It would be my honor to show the luminous Pink Diamond and the fearsome Jasper some of the beautiful sights of this colony,” Doc, the leader of the small squadron of Rubies, said while offering them a small bow.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Thanks, but we really should get going,” Twoie said, ignoring Doc’s crestfallen expression. “I wouldn't want to keep Yellow waiting.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Of course, how thoughtless of me,” Doc said, lightly smacking her hand against her forehead. Leggy, Navy, and Eyeball followed suit and began to spout apologies.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Our deepest apologies, my Diamond.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“We’ll bring you to a warp pad right away.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It was an honor to bask in your radiance.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie offered them a weak smile and insisted that he had not been offended, but they continued to apologize and bombard him with compliments which a few of the patrolling Quartz soldiers overheard. Soon, they had a small crowd of soldier gems not so subtly following them on their journey to the warp pad. A few fingers were pointed his way and he would occasionally hear the words ‘Pink Diamond’ whispered amongst the group.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He ignored the amazed stares he received and pretended not to notice when a gem stopped to salute him. The whole situation was giving him flashbacks of his own years spent on Homeworld where he was waited on hand and foot and was constantly treated like royalty. It made his stomach churn, so when they finally arrived at a room with many warp pads he was relieved and immediately went to stand on the nearest one. The Rubies gave him one last salute before he was engulfed in a flash of light headed towards Homeworld.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Steven groaned into his pillow. Someone was shouting, their voice shrill and worried. He burrowed himself further into his sheets and attempted to tune it out, but it only grew louder and more incessant.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Twoie! Please, come out!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Man, this is bad. Where is he?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I already told you, he’s on his way to Hom—”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Twoie! Are you in there? Twoie!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven shot up in bed and opened his bleary eyes. All of the gems were gathered inside the beach house. They threw open any doors they could find, overturned furniture, and shouted at the top of their lungs for Twoie. He scrambled out of bed and made his way over to the group of gems.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What’s going on?” he asked, rubbing the remaining sleep from his eyes.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pearl grabbed him by the shoulders and pulled him close. “Thank the stars you’re okay!” she cried. “Have you seen Twoie?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven blinked, his gaze falling on the temple door behind Pearl. “Isn’t he in his room?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The door to the temple door opened to reveal Garnet, her face grim. She gave a small shake of her head, crushing the hopeful expression that Pearl wore. Steven’s heart sank at the sight. If Twoie wasn’t in his room, then where was he?</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Twoie frowned at his reflection. There was nothing outwardly wrong with the outfit the pebbles had made for him. It fit perfectly and was of surprising quality for something made in such a short amount of time, but it </span>
  <em>
    <span>felt </span>
  </em>
  <span>wrong and he had to fight against the urge to rip it off his body. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He turned away from the large ornate mirror, his frilly pink skirt moving with him, and gestured down at his outfit. “What do you think?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jasper eyed him for a moment before grunting and offering a shrug. She was seated on a pile of cushions that the pebbles had made into a makeshift couch, an indifferent expression on her face.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twoie sighed. “Yeah, it’s not really my style,” he said, lifting up his pink slippers and watching as the white pom poms attached to them swayed in the air. “But Yellow and Blue always took me more seriously when I was dressed like this.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A multi-note chime echoed throughout Pink Diamond’s old room, Yellow Diamond’s chime. The pebbles scampered away to go hide in the walls, although not before getting rid of any stray tangles in his hair and making him look as presentable as possible.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Yellow Pearl stood in the doorway, her arms already in the shape of a Diamond salute. “Pink Diamond, my Diamond has requested your presence.” Jasper rose from her seat and prepared to follow only for Yellow Pearl to gesture at her to stay seated. “Only Pink Diamond’s presence was requested.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Why can’t Jasper come?” he asked. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jasper narrowed her eyes and sent Yellow Pearl any icy glare, but the smaller gem remained unflinching. “My Diamond has made it clear that this was to be a </span>
  <em>
    <span>private </span>
  </em>
  <span>meeting.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“But what if I get ambushed on the way there?” The chances of anyone on Homeworld even looking at him the wrong way let alone attacking him were basically nonexistent, but he </span>
  <em>
    <span>really </span>
  </em>
  <span>didn’t want to be alone with the Diamonds. “Wouldn’t it be safer if I brought Jasper with me?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“My Diamond has ensured the safety of the meeting by increasing all security measures. No harm will befall you, Pink Diamond.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Right…” Twoie flashed Jasper a weak grin. “I guess I’ll see you later. Wish me luck…”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jasper placed her hand on top of his head, ruffling his hair somewhat in the process. “You can do this, Twoie.” she gave him a big thumbs up, something she must have learned from Steven, and just like that he was on his way to Yellow Diamond.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0026"><h2>26. The Lion's Den</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>The room in which Twoie’s meeting with Yellow Diamond was scheduled to take place was empty—not entirely empty of course, there was still a set of four large colorful thrones (presumably where the Diamonds were supposed to sit) and a even larger table in the center, but there was no sign of Yellow Diamond anywhere. Where could she possibly be? It wasn’t like her to be late, </span>
  <em>
    <span>especially</span>
  </em>
  <span> to a meeting with a fellow Diamond. Punctuality was the mark of a great leader, at least that’s what she had constantly reminded him every time he was even a second late to anything.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yellow?” he called, his voice echoing off the walls. “It’s me, Pink Diamond.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He went silent as he waited for a reply. He half expected her to step out from one of the enormous pillars in the room. Maybe she was hiding, waiting for the right moment to show herself in an effort to make a grand entrance. It wouldn’t be completely out of character for her to do so, but a part of him already knew that wasn’t the case. Something wasn’t right here, and his displeasure at having to leave Jasper behind only grew as minutes ticked by with still no sign of Yellow Diamond.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He briefly considered just leaving and heading back to his room, but he had made it this far and wouldn’t allow himself to be discouraged by such a minor setback. That, and he was pretty sure the swarm of elite guards stationed outside the meeting room would have some objections with him leaving so soon. Yellow Pearl wasn’t kidding when she told him that Yellow Diamond had increased security measures. The hallway leading to the room was packed with Rubies, Amethysts, Jaspers—heck, he’d even seen a couple of Aquamarines flying around.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He leapt onto the arm rest of the pink colored throne that was far too large for him and sighed. He hated waiting, but it looked like there was nothing else he could do.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Steven tried to hide between Lapis and Spinel who were boarding the ship, but was pulled back towards the beach by the back of his shirt. Lapis looked like she was going to help him, but Amethyst pushed her along into the ship. Spinel offered him a sympathetic smile before turning and following after the other two gems.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Steven was whipped around to face a serious Pearl. She crossed her arms and tapped her foot against the sand. “Steven, for the last time, you are </span>
  <em>
    <span>not</span>
  </em>
  <span> going to Homeworld.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I am too,” he insisted, meeting Pearl’s intense gaze with one of his own. There was no way he was staying behind when he knew Twoie was in danger. If they went together they had a higher chance of succeeding. Unfortunately, the others didn’t see it that way and were adamant about him staying behind. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Pearl frowned. “You are not.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I am too!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You are not!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I am t—”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Would you clods just make up your minds already!” Peridot shouted, kicking some sand up in the air. She juggled a small pile of tools in one hand and the timepiece in the other. “</span>
  <em>
    <span>None</span>
  </em>
  <span> of us are going to Homeworld if you keep arguing like this.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Peridot’s right,” Garnet said. “Time is a resource we can’t afford to be wasting right now.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Then let’s go already.” Steven started to walk towards the green handship, tightening the straps of his cheeseburger backpack as he did so.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Garnet stepped in his path. “Steven,” she said. “I know you want to help, but this is far too dangerous for you.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I can protect myself just fine,” he said. “Twoie needs our help and I’m not stay—”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Steven</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Garnet pleaded. She bent down so that she was at eye level with him and removed her visor, her three eyes were swirling with worry. “I know you’ve come a long way with mastering your powers and I’m proud of you—we all are, but the Diamonds are like nothing we’ve ever faced before. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Please</span>
  </em>
  <span>, for your own safety, stay on earth.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Steven’s gaze fell to the sand beneath his flip flops. What was he supposed to say to that?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Pearl bent down to give him a hug. “Don’t worry, we’ll bring him back.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Steven silently returned the embrace. He wanted to beg to go, demand to be let on the mission, but one glance at their determined faces was all it took to make him realize that they would not be changing their minds.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Be careful,” he told them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Pearl nodded and made her way to the waiting ship. Garnet placed her visor back on and followed after her. It was only when the two of them fully boarded the ship did Steven remember that Peridot was still watching him. She approached him while fumbling with something hidden in her pile of tools.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Here,” she said, offering him a small white device. He took it and inspected it’s colorful sides. “You should be able to contact any Diamond with this.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, it’s a phone?” he asked, turning the device around in his hands a few times. Maybe he could try calling Twoie.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“A communicator, yes,” Peridot confirmed. “I’ve tried dialing Pink Diamond a few times, but no one’s answered yet.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Steven perked up. “I’ll keep trying!” If there was anything he could do to help then he was willing to try it. With luck, he could get into contact with Twoie and convince him to come home.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Peridot boarded the ship without another word. A few seconds later it sprung to life and took off into the air. Steven waited until it was nothing more than a speck in the sky before turning his attention back to the communicator in his hand. He pressed the pink side of the device for the first of many times and anxiously waited for a response.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Either Yellow Diamond was taking an especially long time to arrive or Twoie was even weaker than he’d suspected because he soon found himself drifting off to sleep. He curled up against the hard surface of the pink armrest and dreamt that he was back in his time where the situation with the Diamonds was more or less resolved. Of course, his small moment of respite didn’t last long as he was almost immediately jolted awake by the loud and rumbling thuds of approaching footsteps. He shot up into a sitting position, his muscles impossibly tense and his gaze darting over to the large set of doors at the end of the room—the only way inside.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The footsteps grew even louder and the very ground began to shake. The ornate doors flung themselves open. Twoie’s pulse raced at the sight of not one, but two Diamonds. Well, that certainly explained where Yellow Diamond had been.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“… complicated situation, Blue!” Yellow Diamond stomped into the room, a deep frown already on her face. She pinched the bridge of her nose. “Everything can’t just go back to how it use—”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“All that matters is that we’re together again, Yellow.” Blue Diamond was almost timid in the way she entered, her steps slow and hesitant. She placed a hand on Yellow Diamond’s shoulder. “We should be celebrating. This will mark the beginning of a new era.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Yellow Diamond sighed. “White won’t see it that way…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie found himself tugging at his pink gloves as he ran through a mental checklist of the proper etiquette required for such a meeting. He schooled his face into an emotionless expression, squared his shoulder, and straightened his back. Neither of them had acknowledged his presence yet. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>A few hushed words were exchanged between the two Diamonds before Yellow finally relaxed enough to start the meeting. She plopped down in her throne with Blue Diamond following suit. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Blue Diamond was only seated for a moment before their gazes locked, her eyes widening and shimmering with unshed tears. A second later he was being scooped up and cradled against Blue Diamond’s face. “Oh Pink!” she cried. “It really is you!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie had hoped dressing as Pink Diamond would garner a positive reaction, but even he had expected Blue Diamond to have some suspicions towards him. However, it looked like he was wrong. Blue Diamond immediately accepted that he was Pink Diamond. Not that he was complaining, this would just make things easier on his part. Yellow Diamond let Blue Diamond cry for a few minutes before making her return him to his seat so the meeting could continue.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>One of the first topics discussed was how he was able to survive the Diamond attack. He explained it as best as he could and easily got them to agree to healing the corrupted gems on earth. Everything was going perfectly. Maybe it was because he was older, or maybe he had just gotten better at knowing exactly what to say, but the Diamonds were actively listening to him. Surprisingly, they didn’t even completely disagree with him on the idea of giving gems more freedom.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Living like this must have been torture for you, Pink,” Blue lamented, a few stray tears rolling down her face.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I suppose there are a few changes we could stand to make,” Yellow agreed. “If it would make you less… miserable, Pink.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He suspected with a bit more time he would be able to convince them to fully abolish the Diamond Authority to make way for something more democratic instead. The real issue came when he tried to convince them that he wasn’t really Pink Diamond. Blue had become inconsolable and latched onto Yellow for support.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m sure your memories are in there somewhere, Pink,” Yellow Diamond said, her gaze drifting over to his exposed gemstone. She awkwardly patted Blue Diamond and the back. “Perhaps it would best if we continued this discussion later when we’ve all had time to calm down.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie wanted to protest, but found himself immobilized. A painful and buzzing static ran through his body. Yellow Diamond took his silence as agreement and guided Blue Diamond out of the meeting room, making several attempts to console her fellow diamond. The doors to the meeting room opened and closed, leaving Twoie alone.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He finally managed to move his arm only to watch it terrifyingly distort in front of him. It flickered and glitched like it was some sort of faulty video game and not a part of his body. He cried out in pain and curled into himself. His whole body shook and for a second he feared that he had run out of time, then the moment passed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He stared at his hand a good while after the glitching ended, making sure it wasn’t permanently damaged. He made a fist. It looked normal, but felt weaker somehow. He tried not to think about it too much as he made his way back to Pink Diamond’s old room.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Peridot glanced up from her spot on the floor as another ship came dangerously close to spotting them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Cut the engine,” Garnet said. “They won’t investigate if we let them pass us by.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Pearl immediately complied with the fusions orders and the ship came to a complete standstill.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We can’t keep stopping every time we see another ship.” Lapis was leaned against the wall, her gaze firmly affixed to the floor. “We’ll never get to Homeworld at this rate.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We are starting to see a lot more ships,” Amethyst agreed. “Maybe we can just blend in and hope nobody notices us.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Amethyst, that’s too risky,” Pearl said. “We could get caught.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A small argument broke out on what should be done, but Peridot did her best to ignore it. Her main concern right now was fixing the time piece. She made some major modifications to its outdated hardware, fixed its faulty power source, and was now furiously trying to sort its tangled wiring.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The handship continued on its course for Homeworld, stopping a few times when another ship came too close, and was generally making slow progress until Garnet started to give strange orders. Peridot readjusted a small bundle of delicate wires and watched as Garnet directed Pearl to stop for no reason. Pearl did as she was told, but sent Garnet a confused stare which quickly disappeared when a small ship passed them by.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Good catch,” Pearl said.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Garnet nodded and adjusted her visor. Pearl continued forward like nothing had happened.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Peridot frowned. There was no way Garnet would have been able to see a patrol ship that small moving that fast. Her suspicions only grew as Garnet’s orders started to become more and more convoluted. She ordered Pearl to slow down, speed up, take inefficient routes—all at the most seemingly random times.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The odd behavior was starting to distract Peridot from her work, but she had no idea why. What did it matter to her if the route they were taking back to Homeworld was less than ideal? Garnet’s directions were certainly strange, but so far it had kept them safe from detection. No, what bothered her was Garnet’s uncanny ability to spot nearby ships even when they were out of view. It was almost as if she could </span>
  <em>
    <span>predict</span>
  </em>
  <span> where they would show up, but that shouldn’t have been possible, not with Twoie interfering with the timeline.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was only when they stopped near a potentially dangerous asteroid field did Peridot finally decide to speak up about her strange behavior. “Why are we stopping here?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I saw a ship nearby,” Garnet said, but one glance outside revealed no ships in the area. That is, until a ship hidden behind one of the asteroids revealed itself and zoomed by them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It was impossible for anyone to see that ship,” Peridot accused. “There’s something you’re not telling us.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Garnet would never hide something from us,” Pearl defended only to deflate at Garnet’s suspicious silence. “Garnet?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I should have told everybody sooner,” Garnet said, addressing the whole crew. “but I wasn’t sure and I didn’t want to worry Steven.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What do you mean you didn’t want to worry Steven?” Amethyst asked, a small frown on her face. “Is there something we should be worried about?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Garnet was silent for a beat. “I… don’t know,” she finally said. “All I know is that for some reason my future vision is working again.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The ship lurched forward and Peridot had to scramble to secure the timepiece.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What?” Pearl cried. “But Twoie… I thoug—”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It might be temporary,” Garnet said. “Twoie is far away on Homeworld right now. He might be too far to interfere with my future vision.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>No one said anything after that, but Peridot couldn’t help but worry that something had gone horribly wrong.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Twoie picked up his pace, ignoring the occasional jolts of pain that traveled up his body, and focused on the quiet whir that seemed to be following him. He whipped around only to be greeted by a long empty stretch of hallway. He shook his head and continued onward.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The almost imperceptible sound returned, but he continued walking. He must have been imagining things. He was almost at Pink Diamond’s room now. He would catch up with Jasper and try to get some sleep before his next meeting with the other Diamonds.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Pink Diamond, your presence is required.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He jumped, chills running up his spine at the emotionless voice. A bleached Pearl hovered in front of him, an unnerving grin plastered on her half cracked face. He wasn’t given the chance to respond as he was enveloped in a sphere and dragged off somewhere a moment later.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>When the white orb imprisoning him finally disappeared, Twoie was left staring at an immaculate white floor. In fact, everything around him was now a brilliant shade of white—the floors, the ceiling, and the four impenetrable walls keeping him trapped.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Pink, there you are.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie had to cover his eyes just to glance up at the blinding presence that was White Diamond. A large smile stretched across her face, one that didn’t quite reach her eyes. A cold and heavy feeling settled in his stomach, making him take a step back. He suddenly wished he was back with Blue and Yellow.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“As for this latest little game of yours, thank the stars it's over. Did you have fun? Did you get everything out of your system?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>There was no time in between her questions for him to reply and Twoie highly doubted that she cared about his answers anyway. Not like it mattered since he had more important things to concern himself with. He was standing in front of White Diamond, a terrifying, but also great opportunity. If he could get through to her then Steven would never have to deal with the Diamonds. Too bad she wouldn’t listen to him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“White, I—”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Good, good,” she continued, ignorant of his thinning patience. “Everyone is so reliev—”</span>
</p><p><span>“I’m</span> <span>not Pink Diamond” The abrupt statement was enough to give White Diamond pause. “She’s gone, White.”</span></p><p>
  <span>White Diamond’s smile only grew wider. “Oh Pink, you always were stubborn. You’ve even managed to fool yourself.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, you’re wrong!” he shouted, his hand subconsciously drifting to his gem. He could feel the familiar pink buzz of his powers pooling into his cheeks, but didn’t try to stop it. He needed all the power he could get right now. “Pink Diamond is gone! And she is </span>
  <em>
    <span>never </span>
  </em>
  <span>coming back.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Pink, stop lying to your—”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re not listening to me!” White Diamond went silent, annoyance and amusement flashing across her eyes. “Pink Diamond is gone, </span>
  <em>
    <span>really </span>
  </em>
  <span>gone. I know you think pulling my gem out will bring her back, but it won’t.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>White Diamond’s eyes actually widened a bit at that. “How di—”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“My gem was already pulled out once.” </span>
  <em>
    <span>by you</span>
  </em>
  <span>, he wanted to add, but he knew it would only lead to unnecessary confusion so he kept that part to himself. A memory of a pink version of himself flashed in his mind. Having his gem ripped out of him had been an unbearably painful experience, but had proved that he really wasn’t his mom. He was his own person. “She didn’t come back. Even if she did, she wouldn’t want to come back to Homeworld. Everybody is miserable here, White—even Yellow and Blue, but it doesn’t have to stay that way.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yellow and Blue are miserable,” White Diamond repeated, an almost curious expression on her face. She actually seemed to be listening to him now. “How would you propose we fix that, Pink?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie suppressed a scowl at her use of the name Pink, but ignored it for the time being. “We dismantle the empire,” he said, cutting straight to the chase. “We give all gems the freedom to choose who they want to be. I know it sounds impossible and maybe even crazy, but it has worked before. On earth, gems are allowed to live freely and they are so much happier because of it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I understand now.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie blinked. “You… do?” it couldn’t be that easy, could it? In his time it took him years to even get to </span>
  <em>
    <span>speak </span>
  </em>
  <span>with White Diamond and now, not only did she seek him out, but she actually agreed with him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It was foolish of me to try and change you.” She continued to smile at him, but her eyes had turned cold. “Sometimes we must do things we hate for the greater good.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The tension in his shoulders loosened. “So, yo—”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>White Diamond’s eyes grew impossibly bright before shooting out a blast of energy. He summoned his shield on reflex, the beam of light harmlessly bouncing off it. She frowned and sent another beam his way, but Twoie was prepared and raised his shield again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Her eyes narrowed. “This is for your own good, Starlight.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Another blast, this one much stronger. Twoie grit his teeth as he struggled to weather the attack, his heels attempting to dig into the smooth floor. He was pushed back a few feet, but remained unharmed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“White, stop!” he pleaded, his arms shaking under the strain of her continued attacks. “You don’t have to do this!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>To his surprise, White Diamond actually stopped and for a brief moment a flicker of hope lit up inside of Twoie. A hope that maybe White Diamond would listen this time, that they could resolve this without the need for fighting, but that hope was quickly extinguished as another beam of light crashed into his shield.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m afraid you’ve left me no other choice,” she said, no hint of remorse in her voice.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He withstood the blow, but the same could not be said about his shield. It flickered before disappearing completely.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>White Diamond wasted no time in sending him another hit. Twoie summoned his shield again, but it was a glitching weak mess and only barely prevented the attack from reaching him. The shockwave from the blow sent him colliding against the nearest wall, his head taking the brunt of the damage.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He groaned, vision swimming as he struggled to get up. His whole body erupted in pain as he glitched violently. Everything hurt. He could feel himself slipping into unconsciousness, but he wouldn’t allow himself to rest. He was </span>
  <em>
    <span>this </span>
  </em>
  <span>close to fixing everything and there was no way he was giving up now.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His skin began to glow pink as he forced himself to stand, his legs wobbling and swaying as they struggled to support his weight. His entire body flickered causing him to cry out as a searing agony assaulted all his senses.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Look at what you’ve done to yourself.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She sent another blast of energy his way. He threw himself to the side, narrowly avoiding getting hit. His heart pounded against his chest, blood rushing in his ears as he evaded attack after attack.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s enough!” White growled when another of her attacks failed to hit their intended target.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sweat poured down his face. He leapt up in the air and desperately searched for a way out, but there were no doors, no windows, no escape. He rolled onto the ground as he avoided another beam of light.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I only want you to be yourself.” Her eyes grew even brighter as she charged up an attack. “If you can’t do that, then I’ll do it for you!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The whole room was engulfed in a blinding light. The energy of the attack crackled and buzzed outside of the pink bubble he had erected. His breaths came out in short uneven puffs and he was forced to shrink his bubble in order to conserve energy. He couldn’t keep this up forever and White Diamond knew it. She stopped her attack and watched as his bubble began to dim and weaken. Even the pink energy humming under his skin didn’t feel as strong as it used to. He channeled all his remaining strength and directed it at keeping his bubble up.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Tears pooled in his eyes. His bubble was fading, blinking in and out of existence. He weakly pushed against it, trying to get it to roll away. He couldn’t stay here. He needed to find the exit. His body spasmed, crumbling onto the unforgiving floor at the same time that his last line of defense disappeared.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>White Diamond’s eyes began to glow. “This is for the best, Starlight.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Splotches of black dotted his vision. He tried to crawl away, but could only get his pink fingers to twitch before his body refused to move. Exhaustion seeped into his bones and it was all he could do just to keep his eyes open. </span>
  <em>
    <span>No, stop, </span>
  </em>
  <span>he wanted to shout. It couldn’t end like this. His body glitched again, but he didn’t feel anything.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was too late, he had lost.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>An all encompassing white light was the only thing he was aware of in his final moments</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Just one more chapter left!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0027"><h2>27. Homeworld</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Clocking in at 32 pages and just over 11K words, I think this is the longest chapter I've ever written. Anyways, I just want to say thanks to everyone who has been with me throughout this whole journey. It's been a great and I appreciate all the support!! &lt;3 &lt;3</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Jasper was a Quartz soldier. She was supposed to be brave.</p><p> </p><p>So how could she have acted so cowardly?</p><p> </p><p>White Diamond’s Pearl walked a good couple of feet ahead of Jasper, hovering several inches off the floor. An exaggerated smile stretched out across her bleach-white face. Deep cracks clustered themselves around the area where an eye should have been. In short, she made for an eerie sight, but Jasper followed her anyway. She had to. Disobeying her orders would have been tantamount to questioning White Diamond’s authority. Something not even Jasper was brave enough to do.</p><p> </p><p>A part of her screamed at her to turn around and search for Twoie, but Pearl’s intense stares in her direction kept her walking.  Jasper’s steps slowed as they approached a transportation hub. It was a large room with dozens of warp pads squeezed in anywhere there was space available. Groups of soldiers, technicians, and terraforming gems all disappeared in flashes of light.</p><p> </p><p>“You will be briefed on your next assignment by Amethyst Facet-4 Cut-7YN,” Pearl spoke, her gaze drifting over to a group of a dozen or so Quartz soldiers waiting by a nearby warp pad. </p><p> </p><p>Jasper gave a curt nod in response and waited for Pearl to leave, but she didn’t. Instead Pearl hovered near the entrance, an ever present smile on her face as Jasper reluctantly moved to join the waiting group. Jasper mindlessly spewed out her facet and cut number and got into the appropriate formation.</p><p> </p><p>The leader of her new squadron, an Amethyst with a gemstone in the place of her left eye, was barking out information on their next assignment. Jasper ignored her in favor of stealing glances back at Pearl. The second she was gone, Jasper would abandon her post and head back to Pink Diamond’s room. Except, Pearl remained even as everyone received their individual orders and even as the warp pad engulfed Jasper in a bright light.</p><p> </p><p>As the warp stream carted her off to some distant outpost, Jasper cursed herself for being a coward.</p><hr/><p>Steven clutched at the hem of his shirt, mindlessly twisting it in his hands, not caring if the fabric wrinkled. He sat alone on the living room couch. For several hours he hadn’t taken his eyes off the diamond-shaped screen that floated above the coffee table.</p><p> </p><p>For those same few hours, the pink screen had been blank.</p><p> </p><p>Steven was a second away from shutting off the communicator and heading to bed when a face appeared. A one-eyed Pearl met his surprised gaze, a large grin plastered on her chalk-white face.</p><p> </p><p>It was a minute before either of them spoke.</p><p> </p><p>“I… um,” Steven fumbled with his words, desperately trying to choke out something half intelligible before the Pearl lost her patience and hung up. “I want to talk to Twoie,” he said, trying his best to sound confident. When the Pearl failed to respond he meekly added, “… please.”</p><p> </p><p>The Pearl blinked, her first action since the call began.</p><p> </p><p>“Twoie,” she repeated the name, a hint of amusement in her otherwise cold voice. “Is that what she was calling herself?”</p><p> </p><p>“We couldn’t both be Steven.” He placed a hand on his shirt, over where his gemstone rested. “That would have been really confusing. Is Twoie there? I need to talk to him. It’s super important.”</p><p> </p><p>“You’re one of Pink’s organic pets, I presume?”</p><p> </p><p>“I’m not a pet,” Steven said, frowning. “and I’m only half-human.” He lifted his shirt up just enough for his gemstone to be visible.</p><p> </p><p>Steven was too busy explaining his hybrid nature to see the Pearl’s eye widen.</p><p> </p><p>“Pink Diamond has requested your presence,” the Pearl said, interrupting Steven’s explanation.</p><p> </p><p>“Really? That’s great!” Steven said, relieved. Twoie couldn’t have been in serious danger if he was asking for him. “Can you put him on?”</p><p> </p><p>The Pearl stared at him for a full second before replying, “A ship is headed to your coordinates and will take you to Homeworld.”</p><p> </p><p>“I’m not allowed to leave the earth. I just need to talk to Twoie. He left without saying anything and now everybody is really worri—”</p><p> </p><p>“Pink Diamond is currently occupied with other matters. If you wish to have an audience with her then you must arrive in person.”</p><p> </p><p>Steven bit his lip. He really wanted to see Twoie again, but the gems had pleaded with him to stay far away from Homeworld and the other Diamonds. What to do? Stay on earth like the gems had wanted, worried and alone or… </p><p> </p><p>“I’ll go,” he eventually decided. “but <em> only </em>to talk to Twoie. I don’t want any of the other Diamonds to know I’m coming.”</p><p> </p><p>The Pearl’s already large smile grew even larger. “Of course,” she said. “I’ve already taken the necessary precautions to ensure your arrival is kept… discreet.”</p><p> </p><p>Steven let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. Soon, he would be reunited with Twoie. They would meet up with the gems and everything would go back to normal.</p><hr/><p>Ruby followed behind Sapphire as they passed by a large room. It was a teleportation hub, meaning it was packed full of gems who might see through their act. Beside her, Peridot tensed as she stole a glance at the crowded room. Peridot sped up and returned to tinkering with the timepiece.</p><p> </p><p>“How much longer till we get there?” Amethyst asked once they were a safe enough distance from the room. She stood taller than both Pearl and Spinel and wore a Homeworld uniform. The three of them all trailed behind Lapis. “I don’t know if I can keep this up for much longer.”</p><p> </p><p>“Pink Diamond’s room should be just up ahead,” Pearl said, her gaze darting to the colorful murals that lined the palace walls. “I never thought I’d be back here… ”</p><p> </p><p>“Tell me about it,” Spinel agreed. “It’s different from what I remember.” She stopped to stare at a particular mural. “A lot different… ”</p><p> </p><p>Ruby frowned as she approached. The mural was of a battlefield. Gem shards were strewn amongst piles of weapons with Pink Diamond looming over it all. She sat in her Palanquin with a victorious grin painted on.</p><p> </p><p>“One of hundreds of similar murals depicting Pink Diamond,” Peridot said, still fiddling with the timepiece. “They were commissioned by Yellow Diamond during the war.”</p><p> </p><p>“It’s creepy,” Spinel said. </p><p> </p><p>“Yeah, no kidding,” Amethyst agreed. “Yellow Diamond needs to get better taste.”</p><p> </p><p>“Who cares,” Lapis said. “Let’s hurry up and find Twoie already. The sooner we find him, the sooner we can leave.” She narrowed her eyes at the mural before walking ahead of the group.</p><p> </p><p>“What’s her problem?” Amethyst asked. “I thought she <em> wanted </em>to go to Homeworld?”</p><p> </p><p>“Not as a traitor,” Peridot said, not even glancing up from the timepiece. “If we’re caught, the Diamonds will have us all shattered.” She paused as if thinking and then very calmly added, “Or harvested, or experimented on, or—”</p><p> </p><p>“Quiet,” Sapphire said. “We need to hide.”</p><p> </p><p>Everybody was immediately on alert, searching for a suitable hiding spot, but the hallway was long and empty. Thinking fast, Ruby pressed herself against the nearest wall, pulling Peridot and Sapphire along with her. Lapis, Pearl, Amethyst, and Spinel followed her lead and pressed themselves against the wall across from her. Nobody dared move as the sound of footsteps grew louder.</p><p> </p><p>A sea of red flooded the hall as dozens upon dozens of Rubies walked past them. They chatted loudly amongst themselves, playfully pushing and shoving. Thankfully, none of them seemed to notice their presence. The hallway soon began to empty out as the Rubies headed to their destination, but a small group of three bickering Rubies lingered.</p><p> </p><p>“That doesn’t count,” A Ruby with a gem on her right cheek said. “We were a fusion.”</p><p> </p><p>The Ruby she was talking to frowned. Her gem was on her shoulder. “Well, I still took out more than you,” Shoulder Ruby said. “If it weren’t for me we would’ve failed.”</p><p> </p><p>“Oh yeah,” Cheek Ruby challenged. “Well, if it weren’t for me you would’ve gotten lost. Right, 6FN?”</p><p> </p><p>Ruby 6FN looked nervously between her fellow soldier gems. “Oh, um, well…”</p><p> </p><p>The metal clicks of gears locking into place echoed in the large hallway. Ruby tried to take the time piece away from Peridot but she pulled it closer to herself and continued working on it.</p><p> </p><p>“I’m nearly finished,” Peridot whispered just loud enough for Ruby to hear. </p><p> </p><p>“Finish later,” Ruby harshly whispered back. </p><p> </p><p>Peridot ignored her and continued to work on the timepiece. The noise she was making made one of the Rubies look up. </p><p> </p><p>“We need to be quiet,” Sapphire murmured after the Ruby returned to her ongoing conversation.</p><p> </p><p>“That’s not true at all,” Shoulder Ruby said. “I wasn’t lost, I was taking a shortcut. Tell her, 6FN.”</p><p> </p><p>Ruby was practically wrestling the timepiece away from Peridot, but the green gem was not giving it up. Some time during their fight Peridot yanked back the time piece, hard. Ruby, not expecting such a strong tug, let the timepiece go. It flew out of both their hands.</p><p> </p><p>“I think,” Ruby 6FN hesitated.  “… you both did grea—huh?”</p><p> </p><p>The time piece had landed onto Ruby 6FN’s poofy head of hair. </p><p> </p><p>Without thinking, Ruby rushed out into the open and swiped the time piece. She hid it behind her as the three Rubies stared at her with identical blank expressions. Ruby said nothing and smiled nervously.</p><p> </p><p>“Hmn.” Cheek Ruby eyed her suspiciously for a moment before shrugging. “Well, we should probably get going if we want to catch up with the others.”  </p><p> </p><p>The rest of the group murmured in agreement and turned to leave. All except for Ruby 6FN who stood watching Ruby curiously. “Aren’t you coming?” she asked.</p><p> </p><p> “You guys go ahead,” Ruby said, pretending to do some stretches. “I’ll catch up.”</p><p> </p><p> Ruby 6FN stared at her for a second longer before grinning. “Alright, weirdo.” She gave Ruby a playful shove. “don’t take too long.” </p><p> </p><p>The push coupled with her strange stance made Ruby lose her balance. She stumbled and watched in horror as the time piece flew out of her hand.</p><p> </p><p>“All my hard work!” Peridot shrieked as she lunged for the time piece.</p><p> </p><p> “Peridot!” Amethyst cried, trying in vain to pull Peridot back into hiding.</p><p> </p><p>They both stepped out into the open, faces frozen in fear. </p><p> </p><p>“What’s going on here?” Ruby 6FN asked, eyes widening as she took note of how short Amethyst and Peridot were. Ruby grimaced.</p><p> </p><p>“Just guarding this mural.” Amethyst quickly shifted back into her Homeworld disguise. She flashed the Ruby a nervous grin and leaned against the wall. “Y’know how it is, hard at work patrolling and…  doing guard stuff.”</p><p> </p><p> Ruby 6FN took a step back. “You’re an off color…”</p><p> </p><p>Peridot clutched the timepiece close to her chest. “We’re all goners.”</p><p> </p><p>Suddenly, a pair of rubbery arms sprung out from the shadows and wrapped themselves around Ruby 6FN. She squirmed and thrashed against her restraints, but all her attempts ended in failure. Still, her muffled shouts continued to spill out into the hall, growing louder and more frantic with each passing second. It would only be a matter of time before one of the other Rubies came to check up on them.</p><p> </p><p>“Spinel,” Pearl reprimanded, stepping away from the wall and over to the captured Ruby. “We were supposed to stay hidden.”</p><p> </p><p>Spinel shrugged. “I don’t think that was working out for us.”</p><p> </p><p>“We have a prisoner now?” Lapis pinched the bride of her nose. “Are we just supposed to take her with us?”</p><p> </p><p>“Hey, 6FN,” Shoulder Ruby called. She was walking toward them with a small group of Rubies by her side. “What’s taking you guys so lo—” She stopped and stared at the scene. Ruby 6FN flailed against her restraints.</p><p> </p><p>“Great,” Lapis muttered underneath her breath.</p><p> </p><p>Ruby managed to reach Sapphire just as one of the Rubies shouted: “Defective gems!”</p><hr/><p>The kindergarten was a dark green. The color reminded Jasper of the grass on earth which in turn reminded her of Twoie. She clenched her jaw. He had never returned from his meeting. White Diamond’s Pearl had arrived shortly after, claiming that Twoie had relieved Jasper of her duty. Now, she was stuck guarding a group of Peridots who hadn’t even emerged yet.</p><p> </p><p>“I spotted one!” the Amethyst she was paired with cried. She summoned her weapon, a sharp axe, and charged directly toward one of the empty holes in the kindergarten. Jasper sighed and moved to follow, but the Amethyst waved her back. “I got this!”</p><p> </p><p>Jasper didn’t bother answering and leaned against the rock wall behind her. A second later, the Amethyst was thrown against the ground as a large creature slammed right into her. It had sharp claws and even sharper teeth. It struck at its pinned prey who remained unfazed against the barrage of attacks. The Amethyst used her superior strength to throw the hairless beast off her. Using the new space she had, the Amethyst pulled back her axe and swung it at the lizard-like animal, slicing it clean in half.</p><p> </p><p>Jasper frowned at the messy sight, watching as the two halves of the creature pulled together. Like magic, scaly green skin stitched itself closed leaving an enraged animal in its wake. It charged at the Amethyst and their fight began anew. Jasper resisted the urge to sigh, the organics on this planet were stubborn and difficult to kill. It would be a while before the creature admitted defeat and turned to leave</p><p> </p><p>“No way!” a Ruby cried loud enough to catch Jasper’s attention. Her gem was on her forehead and she was being flanked by two other Rubies. The group was most likely headed deeper into the kindergarten to act as back up for some of the other Quartzes. “That’s impossible. She was shattered ages ago.”</p><p> </p><p>Were they talking about Pink Diamond? About Twoie? Jasper listened closely.</p><p> </p><p>“It’s true,” Another Ruby, this one with a gem on her shoulder, said. She pointed to the third Ruby. “Ask 6FN, she was there.”</p><p> </p><p>Ruby 6FN nodded, but looked unsure. “Well, it was definitely a Pearl, but I don’t know if it was <em> the </em> Renegade Pearl.” She shrugged and nervously added, “The important thing is that she was captured, right?”</p><p> </p><p>Jasper froze, eyes wide. <em> What?  </em></p><p> </p><p>“Ha!” forehead Ruby cheered. She stopped and turned to shoulder Ruby. “See? I was right. It wasn’t <em> really </em> her. It was probably just an old defective Pearl.”</p><p> </p><p>“I’m telling you,” insisted shoulder Ruby, shooting 6FN a glare. “It was her. She even had a whole group of off-colors working for her.”</p><p> </p><p>Jasper plucked forehead Ruby off the ground, earning a surprised yelp from the smaller gem. Her two squad mates regarded her warily, but didn’t attack. Jasper was a Quartz soldier, she outranked them.</p><p> </p><p>“Who was with her?”</p><p> </p><p>Forehead Ruby floundered. “W-what?”</p><p> </p><p>“The renegade Pearl! Was a human with her?”</p><p> </p><p>“I don’t remember! There were a lot of them. A Peridot, an Amethyst, a fusio—”</p><p> </p><p>Jasper dropped her onto the ground before she could finish. That sounded like the Crystal Gems to her, meaning they had gotten captured. Jasper ignored the confused questions of the Rubies, marched away from her post, and made her way over to the nearest warp pad. She would deal with the consequences of her actions later, right now she needed to save Steven.</p><hr/><p>The second Steven stepped out of the ship, he knew something was wrong. The two gems assigned to him, an Aquamarine and a Topaz, refused to leave his side. They stuck to him like glue while they escorted him through a military base and over to a warp pad. They were treating him more like a prisoner than a guest. A part of him hoped he was just being paranoid, that the stress from Twoie’s abrupt disappearance was getting to him, but that hope was crushed the second the light from the warp pad faded. </p><p> </p><p>Two giant  women, one yellow and one blue, stood several feet away from the warp pad. They towered over everything and everyone in the room, their sheer size making him feel like an ant in comparison.</p><p> </p><p>Steven froze, eyes wide. It had to be them—the Diamonds.</p><p> </p><p>He couldn’t stay here. His gaze fell to the polished crystal beneath his flip-flops. Using the warp pad wouldn’t work. At best, it would only delay his capture since his two ‘guards’ were bound to follow after him. He doubted he could beat both Topaz and Aquamarine in a fight, at least not while the Diamonds were backing them up. </p><p> </p><p>With no other options Steven turned on his heel and made a run for it, pushing past his two guards and bolting in the direction opposite of the Diamonds. His eyes darted to every corner of the vast room as he searched for an exit. He headed for a door located at the far end of the room, but didn’t get far. </p><p> </p><p>Aquamarine drew a blue ribbon from her hair. With a flick of her wrist the ribbon snapped into a sturdy wand. She pointed it at him, immobilizing him in a beam of blue energy, and reeling him back over to her.</p><p> </p><p>Fear clawed at him like a wild animal, merciless and relentless. Even if he somehow managed to break free of his paralysis, he was still surrounded. One gem on either side of him with Yellow and Blue Diamond looming over him.</p><p> </p><p>Yellow Diamond’s eyes narrowed as she spoke, “What is the meaning of this?”</p><p> </p><p>Blue Diamond remained silent, her lips pressed together in a thin line.</p><p> </p><p>Steven only managed a slow blink in response, his eyes being the only part of his body he had any control over. Not that it mattered, Yellow Diamond wasn’t even looking at him. No, her focus was entirely directed at Aquamarine and Topaz, the two gems who had brought him here in the first place.</p><p> </p><p>“M-my Diamonds,” Aquamarine stuttered out, arms forming a hasty salute. Topaz was quick to copy her. </p><p> </p><p>Yellow Diamond’s clenched fists crackled with energy. “Why wasn’t I informed one of my ships was sent to earth? and why do you have Pink?”</p><p> </p><p>Steven blinked. That was strange. It almost sounded like Yellow Diamond was mad at Aquamarine and Topaz, but that couldn’t be right. Hadn’t it been her who had wanted him captured? Isn’t that why they had brought him here? Apparently not, if Yellow Diamond’s rising  temper was anything to go by. Her frown deepened every second she failed to get an answer.</p><p> </p><p>Aquamarine hesitated before speaking, “We received orders t—”</p><p> </p><p>“I never gave any orders to go to earth,” Yellow Diamond’s voice was low and threatening. What little patience she did have was quickly running out.</p><p> </p><p>“The orders were from White Dia—”</p><p> </p><p>Aquamarine never got the chance to finish. Bolts of energy shooting from Yellow Diamond’s fingers struck her, causing her to disappear in a cloud of smoke, her gemstone clinking against the warp pad. With her gone Steven dropped from the air, free from his earlier paralysis. He scrambled backwards on the floor, watching in horror as Topaz was zapped back into her gem.</p><p> </p><p>“Yellow.” Blue Diamond placed a hand on Yellow Diamond’s shoulder. “Control yourself.”</p><p> </p><p>Yellow Diamond shrugged off her hand, but did stop emanating wild energy. “We need to talk to White.”</p><p> </p><p>Steven’s pulse raced, blood rushing in his ears. This was his chance to escape. He slowly crawled over to the warp pad, not wanting to remind the Diamonds of his presence.</p><p> </p><p>“We will,” Blue Diamond said. “but first we need to deal with Pink’s situation.”</p><p> </p><p>She turned her attention over to him. Steven froze. She had seen him, they both had. Would they attack him now? Imprison him? Something worse?</p><p> </p><p>Blue Diamond’s eyes softened as she gently asked, “Are you alright, Pink?” </p><p> </p><p>The concern in her voice was so genuine that it caught Steven off guard. “W-what?”</p><p> </p><p>“What did White want with you?” Yellow Diamond asked.</p><p> </p><p>“I… don’t know.” It was true. In fact, he didn’t know much of anything at that moment. He was just supposed to talk with Twoie, convince him to return to earth. Except now he was face-to-face with not one, but two Diamonds who were strangely concerned about his well-being. He inched his way over to the warp pad.</p><p> </p><p>Blue Diamond frowned. “What happened to your voice?”</p><p> </p><p>“You’ve shrunk,” Yellow Diamond observed, a note of displeasure in her voice. “This is White’s doing, isn’t it?”</p><p> </p><p>He was now on the warp pad. He could leave if he wanted, but a part of him kept him from doing so. The Diamonds hadn’t attacked him so far and were friendly enough that he risked asking a question, “Where’s Twoie?”</p><p> </p><p>The two Diamond shared a look before Blue Diamond answered, “Two… ie? I’ve never heard of a Twoie.”</p><p> </p><p>“Pink Diamond,” he said, quickly adding, “The other one.”</p><p> </p><p>“Other one?” Yellow Diamond repeated. “Pink, what are you talking about?”</p><p> </p><p>They must have him confused for Twoie, Steven realized. Had Twoie not explained the situation to them? Judging by their confusion, it looked like he hadn’t. </p><p> </p><p>“Right now there are two Pink Diamonds,” Steven began. He pointed at himself. “Me and Twoie. Although, technically we’re the same person. I’m going to grow up to be Twoie one day…  I think. I’m not sure actually. Twoie did tell us he changed the past a lot… ” Steven shook his head. “Anyway, what matters is that there’s two of us right now. Does that make sense?”</p><p> </p><p>The two Diamonds gave him blank stares in return.</p><p> </p><p>Steven sighed. This was going to take a while.</p><hr/><p>For the first time since her emergence all those thousands of years ago, Jasper was afraid.</p><p> </p><p>It was different from the trepidation she sometimes felt when going up against opponents who were stronger than her. At least in those situations she could outmaneuver or outsmart them, but the Diamonds weren’t like her other opponents. They wouldn’t be bested by some flashy moves or clever tactics. No, Jasper wouldn’t last a second in a fight against them.</p><p> </p><p>“Halt,”  the two Topaz guards said simultaneously. They crossed the length of their axes together to form an X, blocking her path to the large set of steel doors. “No one is allowed beyond this point.”</p><p> </p><p>If Jasper couldn’t win in a fight against the Diamonds then her best course of action would’ve been to avoid their notice. After all, how could the Diamonds shatter her if they weren’t even aware she existed? Except, she couldn’t do that, not if she wanted to save Steven.</p><p> </p><p>“I have orders to retrieve a group of gems,” Jasper lied.</p><p> </p><p>The two guards shared a look before asking, “From who?”</p><p> </p><p>They didn’t believe her, not surprising. Only the Diamonds had the authority to release detained gems, a task they delegated to their Agates. Moreover, only gems who had been granted a trial were allowed to be retrieved. Even then, Agates were expected to bring along a small security detail to prevent any escapes.</p><p> </p><p>“Pink Diamond.”</p><p> </p><p>That got their attention.</p><p> </p><p>Cracks of uncertainty spread across the impassive masks they wore. They must have heard the rumors by now, it was hard not to. News of Pink Diamonds return from the dead was spreading like wildfire.</p><p> </p><p>“She was shattered thousands of years ago.”</p><p> </p><p> Jasper shrugged. “Well, she’s back.”</p><p> </p><p>They shared another look, this one longer. </p><p> </p><p>“I have orders to retrieve a group of gems,” she repeated, adding a hint of irritation to her tone. It wouldn’t do good to keep a Diamond waiting. The pair of Topaz guards hesitated. “<em> Rebel </em> gems,” she added. “like the Renegade Pearl.”</p><p> </p><p>That did it. The guards lowered their weapons and opened the doors. It was completely possible that Jasper was lying to them, but they knew it wasn’t worth the risk if they were wrong. Plus, rumors of Pink Diamonds return spreading on the same day the infamous Renegade Pearl gets captured? It was too big to just be a coincidence.</p><p> </p><p>Jasper strolled passed the guards, idly noting that gems caught falsifying orders, especially those of the Diamonds, were shattered. </p><hr/><p>Pearl hugged her legs, pulling them close to her chest. The footfalls of soldier gems accompanied the quiet humming of her small cell.</p><p> </p><p>“This sucks,” Amethyst’s voice echoed from somewhere further down the room. She must have finally reformed. Pearl didn’t answer, but silently agreed. Their situation did <em> indeed </em> suck.</p><p> </p><p>The Rubies had called for backup a short while after their cover had been blown. The hallway was soon crawling with guards, all aiming to capture them.  Still, they fought with everything they had, desperately trying to find an escape route.  They were quickly overwhelmed.</p><p> </p><p>Pearl didn’t know how long it had been since their loss. She had been poofed sometime during the fight, cut down by a Jasper who had overpowered her. As little as an hour, or as much as a week, could have passed. Not that it mattered, she was still a prisoner and it looked like that wasn’t about to change anytime soon.</p><p> </p><p>Pearl pressed herself into the corner of her cell as the sounds of footsteps grew louder. One of the guards must be coming to see her, they wouldn’t be the first. A few of the other guards had come to gawk at the infamous Renegade Pearl. The footsteps stopped in front of her cell and Pearl made it a point to look away. She would ignore them until they got bored and left.</p><p> </p><p>The clacking of keys made Pearl stiffen. Were they going to take her out of her cell? Would they put her on trial? The buzzing forcefield keeping her prisoner went silent.</p><p> </p><p>A gruff voice but familiar voice spoke, “Let’s go.”</p><p> </p><p>Pearl’s head snapped up, eyes wide. It was Jasper, <em> their </em>Jasper.</p><p> </p><p>“Don’t say anything,” Jasper whispered, glancing over her shoulder. She roughly yanked Pearl off the ground, restraining her arms in an uncomfortable position. Pearl opened her mouth to protest, but was caught off guard by the apologetic look on Jasper’s face. “Play along,” she said pushing her forward.</p><p> </p><p>Pearl gave a nod in response and walked without complaint. </p><p> </p><p>They had found Peridot and Lapis first, their gemstones had been carelessly tossed into the cells across from hers. Spinel, also in her gem, was a few cells ahead of them. Jasper added her to her growing collection of gemstones</p><p> </p><p>Amethyst was the first one they ran into who had reformed. She was seated on the floor with her head resting against her knees. She didn’t even look up when the forcefield went down.</p><p> </p><p>“Get up, traitor,” Jasper projected her voice, stealing another glance over her shoulder. A mix of soldier gems patrolled the halls, destabilizers hanging by their waist, ready to prevent any escapes.</p><p> </p><p>Confusion and betrayal bloomed on Amethyst's face as she looked up at them. With Jasper still restraining  Pearl and the cold tone in which she had been addressed, Amethyst must have assumed the worst. She scowled, eyes narrowing, and looked one second away from summoning her whip. Before she could, Pearl winked at her.</p><p> </p><p>Amethyst’s brows furrowed, her scowl disappearing.</p><p> </p><p>Jasper shoved the gemstones into her arms. “Hold these and be quiet.” </p><p> </p><p>Amethyst looked like she was going to argue, but a single glare from Jasper kept her quiet. She shrugged and wordlessly followed them to the next two cells.</p><p> </p><p>Ruby was easy to spot, it would be hard<em> not </em> to notice her with how much noise she was making. She charged at the forcefield of her cell, slamming her shoulder into it at full force. Her form glitched and she cried out in pain as she was sent hurling against the wall. She got right back up, brushing off the pain like it was nothing, and prepared herself for another escape attempt. Then, she stopped, finally taking notice of them.</p><p> </p><p>Pearl was quick to send Ruby a small smile, reassuring her without words that Jasper could be trusted. Ruby didn’t immediately start throwing insults at Jasper, but looked unsure about the whole situation. That all changed the second Jasper pressed the appropriate keys to let her out. Her face lit up and she immediately tried bolting over to the cell next to hers. Thankfully, Jasper caught her before she could blow their cover, holding the smaller gem up by the back of her shirt.</p><p> </p><p>“Follow me and <em> don’t </em> fuse.” Jasper didn’t put her down until Ruby nodded in agreement.</p><p> </p><p>The only indication of surprise Sapphire gave at their arrival was a small, almost imperceptible tilting of her head. She seemed to quickly grasp their situation and wasted no time in joining them.</p><p> </p><p>“Where is he?” Jasper asked, scanning the empty cells around her.</p><p> </p><p>“We haven’t been able to find Twoie,” Pearl said. “We think he might be in Pink Diamo—”</p><p> </p><p>“He’s with White Diamond,” Jasper said, scowling.</p><p> </p><p>Pearl jerked back as if struck.</p><p> </p><p><em> “What?” </em> Ruby shrieked. A few of the guards turned to look their way. She fell silent, but Pearl could hear the sizzling of metal as Ruby’s anger slowly melted the ground under her.</p><p> </p><p>Sapphire had a similar reaction, parts of the floor became encased with a layer of ice.</p><p> </p><p>Amethyst was the only who didn’t seem to grasp the gravity of Jasper's statement. It made sense, she never showed much interest in Homeworld, preferring to explore the wonders of earth. She wouldn’t know how terrible White Diamond truly was.</p><p> </p><p>Jasper didn’t elaborate any further on the subject and instead asked, “Where’s Steven?”</p><p> </p><p>“On earth,” Pearl said. “We didn’t want to put him in danger by bringing him here.”</p><p> </p><p>Jasper seemed to relax at her words, some of the tension leaving her body. “Let’s get out of here.”</p><p> </p><p>Together, they all headed to the exit, tense and worried that someone would realize they were escaping. Pearl stared at the floor and did her best to look defeated when they passed by a group of guards. She remained silent even as they left the prison and only allowed herself to relax when they were standing in front of Pink Diamond’s room.</p><p> </p><p>Jasper finally released her hold on her, tapping a panel located on the wall next to the room. Any feelings of relief Pearl had died as the large pink doors slid open, revealing Yellow and Blue Diamond. She took a step back in preparation of a retreat, but a chipper voice stopped her dead in her tracks, “Hey, guys!”</p><p> </p><p>Pearl was surprised she didn’t poof on the spot. Gently cradled in Blue Diamond’s palm was a grinning Steven.</p><hr/><p>Steven had been afraid of the Diamonds at first, but quickly found that they weren’t all that bad. Sure, Yellow could be intimidating at times and Blue had a tendency to make everyone around her cry, but they never tried to hurt him. Quite the opposite, Blue dotted on him and Yellow had gone to great lengths to ensure his safety, ordering a small battalion of guards to follow them around.</p><p> </p><p>A white orb charged at him and probably would have hit him if it weren’t for Blue Diamond’s quick reflexes. She pulled him close to her chest, using her free hand to hide him from view. He heard the orb zip pass them a few more times before it gave up and left.</p><p> </p><p>“What was that?” he asked, once Blue Diamond had uncovered him.</p><p> </p><p>“White’s Pearl.” Blue Diamond sighed. “Of course she knew about this, about you.”</p><p> </p><p>“She wants something from you,” Yellow Diamond said. She dismissed her guards as they approached two large doors. “Did she tell you anything?”</p><p> </p><p>Steven didn’t reply immediately. The large doors slid open, revealing a pink room that gave him the strangest sense of deja vu. He felt like he had been here before even though he knew he hadn’t.</p><p> </p><p>“No,” he eventually said. “The only thing she told me was that Twoie wanted to talk to me. It didn’t feel like she was trying to get something from me.”</p><p> </p><p>“Hmm,” Yellow Diamond looked pensive. “Have you been in contact with Pin—with Twoie,” she corrected herself. “Blue and I haven’t been able to contact him since our meeting.”</p><p> </p><p>He shook his head. “White’s Peal told me he was busy. That’s why I agreed to go to Homeworld, to talk to Twoie in person.”</p><p> </p><p>Before the conversation could continue any further, the doors to the room opened once more. Steven peered over the edge of Blue Diamond’s hand, perking up at the sight of some familiar faces. Jasper along with Pearl, Ruby, Sapphire, and Amethyst stood frozen in the doorway.  </p><p> </p><p>He beamed down at them, waving to catch their attention. “Hey, guys!”</p><p> </p><p>A couple things happened next, Ruby and Sapphire fused into Garnet, Pearl and Jasper looked about ready to pass out, and Amethyst took a couple steps back. The Diamonds reactions weren’t any better, Blue pulled him close, blocking him from view and Yellow glared at the uninvited group of gems. </p><p> </p><p>Seeing the tension in the room, Steven rushed to get the situation under control. He turned to Blue Diamond and very calmly asked, “Can you put me down?” Blue glanced at the gems and then back at him, hesitating. “Please,” he added. “You’re all my family and I want to introduce you to each other.”</p><p> </p><p>Blue Diamond lowered her hand to the floor and Steven jumped off, moving to greet his family. Amethyst was the first to break out of her shock, nervously asking, “So, are the Diamonds cool now or what?”</p><p> </p><p>Steven smiled. “They were surprisingly understanding once I explained everything to them. I think it’s ‘cause of Twoie, he talked to them first.”</p><p> </p><p>“Steven!” Pearl shouted, rushing over to him. She engulfed him in a hug which he gladly returned. “How did… You were on earth.”</p><p> </p><p>“It’s kind of a long story,” he said. “But I came in a spaceship.”</p><p> </p><p>“You still have your Pearl?” Yellow Diamond asked, sounding surprised.</p><p> </p><p>“She doesn’t belong to me,” Steven said, pulling away from the hug to face her. “We’re family.”</p><p> </p><p>“And the fusion?” Blue Diamond asked. She stared at Garnet, recognition flashing across her eyes. “She interrupted my court.”</p><p> </p><p>“That’s Garnet.” He walked up to her and began to tug her deeper into the room. Garnet was stiff and unsure, but trusted him enough to follow. “She’s made of love.”</p><p> </p><p>Yellow Diamond raised an eyebrow.</p><p> </p><p>“And being fused makes you… happy?” Blue Diamond asked.</p><p> </p><p>Garnet gave her a stiff nod in response.</p><p> </p><p>“Very well,” Blue Diamond said. “You may stay fused. Twoie believed that we should focus more on making sure gem are happy.”</p><p> </p><p>“It’s strange,” Yellow Diamond admitted, nodding. “but it <em> is </em> ultimately harmless.”</p><p> </p><p>Garnet didn’t reply, but her mouth fell slightly agape.</p><p> </p><p>“This is Amethyst,” Steven said, gesturing to the purple gem. </p><p> </p><p>“Yo, what’s up?” Amethyst greeted. She seemed much more at ease now that she had some time to adjust. </p><p> </p><p>“Another off color,” Blue Diamond noted. “I haven’t seen you in the zoo before.”</p><p> </p><p>“This is her first time on Homeworld,” Steven explained before moving on to Jasper. “Yellow, you’ve already met Jasper, right?”</p><p> </p><p>“She belongs to my court, yes,” Yellow Diamond said. “Though, I suppose since she was originally from Pink’s court that she now belongs to you.”</p><p> </p><p>“She doesn’t belong to anyone,” he said, flashing Jasper a smile. She relaxed a bit and managed her own small smile. “She’s her own gem.”</p><p> </p><p>Suddenly, A white orb shot out from the ground, zooming dangerously close to him. Garnet pulled him back before it could touch him. The orb didn’t attempt to go back for him, taking to the air instead. When it was high enough that it was visible to everyone, the orb receded and revealed another Pearl. “White Diamond is throwing a ball in celebration of Pink Diamond’s return,” she said.</p><p> </p><p>Yellow Diamond sighed, “We should start plan—”</p><p> </p><p>“Preparations are already underway,” White Pearl said. “The ball will begin shortly.”</p><p> </p><p>“What?” Blue Diamond frowned. “That’s won’t give us nearly enough time to ge—”</p><p> </p><p>“The ball will begin shortly,” she repeated. “White Diamond expects <em> all </em>Diamonds to attend.”  She was looking directly at him when she said that. Without another word, she was engulfed by a white sphere and promptly disappeared, ignoring Yellow Diamond’s frustrated shouts for her to come back.</p><p> </p><p>“If all Diamonds are expected to attend, does that mean Twoie will show up?” Steven asked.</p><p> </p><p>Before anyone could answer, a bright light erupted from Amethysts hands. She stepped back and watched as three different colored gemstones floated in the air.</p><hr/><p>Steven’s head snapped up as one of the doors opened. A small group of Sapphire’s and their accompanying Ruby guards filed into the room. </p><p> </p><p>Twoie wasn’t among them. </p><p> </p><p>He sighed and went back to staring at the sea of colors that stretched out before him. Hundreds of gems types, many of which he had never seen before, were rushing to form orderly groups in preparation of the Diamonds arrival. The party would be starting soon.</p><p> </p><p>Steven spotted Amethyst, Jasper, and Lapis in the growing crowd. The three of them were the only ones ‘officially’ attending the party. Steven was only half-gem, Pearls weren’t allowed to attend by themselves, Garnet had refused to separate, and Peridot had wanted to spend her time fixing the timepiece. Together, the four of them stood at the far end of the room, behind all of the crowds of gems and close to the doors leading in.</p><p> </p><p>Four empty thrones were located in front of the spacious ballroom. Once all the gems had settled in, the Diamonds would be arriving one by one, each of them taking a seat on their assigned throne.  At least, that’s what was supposed to happen. There was still the chance Twoie wouldn’t show up. That alone made Steven restless, his flip-flops continuously tapping against the polished marble floor as he waited for the Diamonds to appear.</p><p> </p><p>“He’ll show up,” Garnet said, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. She stood next to him, her back leaned against the wall. Was his worry really that obvious? or had she simply seen him asking about Twoie with her future vision? “Don’t worry.”</p><p> </p><p>He bit his lip. “How can you be sure? What if White Diamond was lying to us?</p><p> </p><p>Garnet adjusted her visor. “Twoie attends the ball in all of the possible futures I can see. He’ll show up.”</p><p> </p><p>Steven nodded, but didn’t feel any better. He wouldn’t feel better until he talked to Twoie himself.</p><p> </p><p>“It’s starting,” Pearl said.</p><p> </p><p>Steven glanced back out into the crowd, noting that nothing had changed. Before he could ask Pearl what she meant, a nasally voice rang out, breaking the silence.</p><p> </p><p>“Everyone, behold!” Yellow Pearl announced, gesturing to the curtains held up by a group of Aquamarines behind her. “The daunting, beauty and elegance that is, Yellow Diamond!</p><p> </p><p>The curtains parted and Yellow Diamond strolled in, exuding confidence and grace. Some of the gems closer to the front leaned forward in hopes of getting a better view. Yellow Diamond took her time walking across the room before taking a seat in her throne.</p><p> </p><p>A short while after another voice rang out, this one softer, “Ahem,” Blue Pearl began. “Everyone prepare yourselves emotionally for the overpowering elegance that is, Blue Diamond”</p><p> </p><p>Blue Diamond entered with Spinel, who was waving at the admiring crowds of gems, perched on her shoulder. The Diamonds had really taken a liking to her. Steven flashed Spinel a half-hearted smile when she caught his gaze.</p><p> </p><p>Silence reigned once more as Blue Diamond took her seat. The crowd of gems buzzed with excitement as they waited for the next Diamond to make an appearance. Seconds stretched out into minutes with still no sign of either of the remaining Diamonds. Steven, for his part, was starting to grow nervous. What if Twoie didn’t show up? </p><p> </p><p>Aa if hearing his thoughts a white sphere sprouted from the ground, floating up until it was hovering in the spacious doorway. The sphere disappeared, leaving a one-eyed Pearl in its place. It was the same Pearl from his call, the one who had invited him to Homeworld—White Diamond’s Pearl. Then, It would be White Diamond who would be appearing next. While disappointed it wouldn’t be Twoie, Steven couldn’t help but wonder what she looked like. According to Pearl, White Diamond hadn’t been seen in thousands of years. </p><p> </p><p>“To those in attendance of the Era 3 ball,” White Pearl said. “I am pleased to announce the return of Pink Diamond.”</p><p> </p><p>The curtains parted at the same time Steven’s heart sank.</p><p> </p><p>Standing in the doorway, dressed in all pink with a toothy grin plastered on was a pale Twoie. Except standing was the wrong word. Twoie <em> hovered </em>, his feet never touching the floor, as he gave stiff waves to the gems closest to  him.</p><p> </p><p>Pearl gasped, “Twoie…”</p><p> </p><p>“Something’s wrong,” Garnet said, tensing beside him. She didn’t elaborate, frantically adjusting her visor instead, searching for answers with her future vision.</p><p> </p><p>Twoie’s legs awkwardly emulated the motions of walking as he glided to the other side of the room. It looked wrong, unnatural. Before Steven could dwell on it for much longer, the room went dark. A pair of spotlights moved around sporadically before settling on a still floating White Pearl.</p><p> </p><p>She only spoke two words, but they were enough to send chills down his spine, “White Diamond.”</p><p> </p><p>Peridot made a noise of surprise, looking up from the timepiece for the first time since they had arrived, “She actually came?”</p><p> </p><p>Suddenly, the lights turned back on. </p><p> </p><p>Or, at least, that’s what it looked when White Diamond entered the room. She was as big as Yellow and Blue Diamond, bigger even, and almost blindingly bright. Just looking at her made his eyes hurt, and he was eventually forced to look away or risk permanently damaging his eyesight. It was like staring directly at the sun. Except, the sun didn’t have thundering footsteps or an eerily cold voice, “Welcome to Era 3.”</p><p> </p><p>A strange almost chip tune like sound flowed into the room. All the gems began to dance, moving in sync with the music and each other. There was no passion or joy to their movements, only a blind obedience to do what was expected of them. It was like watching cogs move in a machine.</p><p> </p><p>At some point the lights must have actually turned back on, because Steven could see again. He still couldn’t stare directly at White Diamond, but he was able to catch glimpses of the other Diamonds, glimpses of Twoie. He sat on his pink throne, unmoving and barely blinking.</p><p> </p><p>Steven stared, waved, and even tried jumping up and down to get Twoie’s attention, but nothing worked. Twoie only had eyes for the throng of gems who were lining up to admire him. He thought he saw Amethyst amongst them, but couldn’t be sure.</p><p> </p><p>A sudden and horrible wave of dread washed over him, making his hair stand on end. He glanced up just in time to see White Diamond look away. She had dimmed to the point where Steven could see the irritation in her eyes. Was she upset because she hadn’t been able to capture him? or was it something else?</p><p> </p><p>The sounds of confused murmuring pulled his attention to the shifting sea of gems in front of him. A speck of  purple navigated through the crowd, disrupting the dances taking place and accidentally causing some of the gems to mix. Amethyst popped out from the crowd, swaying in her limb enhancers as she tried to balance herself.</p><p> </p><p>“Did you talk to Twoie? How did it go? What did he say?” Steven asked, before Amethyst could even say anything.</p><p> </p><p>“Nothing.”</p><p> </p><p>Pearl frowned, gaze darting over to the Diamonds. “What do you mean nothing?”</p><p> </p><p>“I <em> mean </em>, he didn’t say a single word to me the whole time I was up there,” Amethyst said. “I tried talking to him, but… I think something is seriously wrong with Twoie. He was all quiet and weird, only smiling and nodding. It creeped me out.”</p><p> </p><p>Steven snuck a glance at Twoie who wore a face-splitting grin. He nodded at a group of gems, his smile never wavering.</p><p> </p><p>“Maybe he’s just really happy to host a party?” Steven suggested, but even he didn’t believe himself.</p><p> </p><p>Amethyst sighed, “Somehow, I doubt that.”</p><p> </p><p>“We wait until the ball ends,” Garnet said. “Then we go talk to him, together.”</p><p> </p><p>Steven nodded and took a seat on the floor, leaning his back against the wall in an attempt to get comfortable. He watched as the sea of gems continued to dance, stealing occasional glances over at Twoie, and willed himself to at least try and enjoy the party.</p><hr/><p>The party stretched out longer than he would have liked, but the hordes of gems eventually thinned out until there was nobody left but the Diamonds. Steven rose from the floor, not bothering to check if the others were following, and headed straight for Twoie. </p><p> </p><p>Yellow and Blue were in the middle of a heated discussion with White Diamond when he arrived.</p><p> </p><p>“… without telling us.” Yellow Diamond said. “And this spur of the moment ball, completely unprecedented.”</p><p> </p><p>“You tried taking Steven from us,” Blue Diamond said. “and if  Yellow hadn’t noticed one of her ships was unaccounted for, you would have succeeded.”</p><p> </p><p>White Diamond didn’t respond to either of them. She looked annoyed and a bit bored at the accusations  being flung her way. That changed when she noticed his arrival, her eyes lighting up in interest. “Pink, how great of you to finally join us,” she said. “Did you enjoy the ball? I hadn’t planned on attending, but I needed to speak with you.”</p><p> </p><p>“I—”</p><p> </p><p>Steven was cut off as someone tackled him to the ground. He summoned his shield and prepared to defend himself, but stopped when he saw who it had been. Jasper held him close, placing herself in between him and the Diamonds. The spot where he had been standing moments ago was crackling with white electricity. Lapis and Peridot moved to stand beside him.</p><p> </p><p>“<em> White </em>,” Yellow Diamond nearly shouted. “What do you think you’re doing?”</p><p> </p><p>“You could have hurt him,” Blue Diamond reprimanded. “<em> This </em> is why we’ve been keeping him away from you.”</p><p> </p><p>Pearl screamed, drawing everyone’s attention over to her. She had gotten on the pink throne at some point and was now quickly backing up from Twoie. She was saying something, frantically shaking her head in denial.</p><p> </p><p>He tried running over to her, but Jasper’s pulled him back. Amethyst and Garnet leapt over to Pearl, worry etched onto their features. Their worry quickly turned to horror as they got a closer look at Twoie. Even from where Steven stood, he was able to see Twoie’s glazed over eyes and haunting smile. Twoie didn’t blink and barely seemed to be breathing. Most worryingly of all, he didn’t even appear aware of his surroundings. Amethyst shook him by his shoulders, trying to get a reaction from him, but it became increasingly apparent that Twoie wasn’t all there.  </p><p> </p><p>“What have you done to him?” he asked.</p><p> </p><p>“She did it to herself,” White Diamond said. “All that time she wasted galavanting on earth, interacting with those far below her station.” Her gaze flicked over to Garnet and the others for a second. “It damaged her. I simply removed all of her flaws and impurities, made her perfect again.”</p><p> </p><p>“Are you crazy?” Amethyst shouted. Her lips curled back into a snarl as she gestured to a comatose Twoie. “How is <em> this </em>perfect?”</p><p> </p><p>“White, release him this instant,” Yellow Diamond demanded, pounding on her armrest. “Taking control of your Pearl was one thing, but this…”</p><p> </p><p>Blue Diamond was on the verge of tears. “Don’t you see, White? This is why Pink left us.”</p><p> </p><p>White Diamond fell silent, the room thick with tension. She raised her arm up and made a sweeping gesture with her hand. Like a puppet with its strings cut off, Twoie toppled over, the white receding from his skin.</p><p> </p><p>Steven rushed over to him, Jasper and the others following closely behind. He reached him just as Twoie was regaining consciousness. The rest of the gems crowded around Twoie. Pearl and Garnet were helping him sit up.</p><p> </p><p>“Wha…” Twoie blinked, his confused eyes taking in his surroundings. Then, he convulsed. He pushed Pearl and Garnet away and thrashed, his entire body glitched in a way that shouldn’t have been possible. It was a terrifying sight and Steven found himself taking a couple steps back. Before anyone could move to help him, a beam of energy collided with Twoie. He cried out and clawed at the white rapidly creeping up his arms and neck.</p><p> </p><p>“See,” Twoie said, in a voice that was not his own. His unnatural grin had returned. “I’m keeping Pink together. She would have fallen apart if it weren’t for me.”</p><p> </p><p>“No, you’re wrong!” Steven shouted, thoroughly disturbed at what he’d just witnessed. “You did something to him.”  He expected one of the gems to back him up, but they remained silent.</p><p> </p><p>“Oh, Pink,” White Diamond chided, shaking her head. Twoie mimicked her actions. “You did this to yourself when you fused with an organic.” Her eyes grew a blinding white. “I only want to make things better.”</p><p> </p><p>One by one, the gems started to turn white. Jasper, who had been the closest to him, was the first to get zapped. Her pained expression quickly turned into a happy one, a wide grin stretching across her face. He moved out of the way at the same time she lunged for him, her arms ended up wrapping around nothing but air. </p><p> </p><p>Lapis and Peridot had moved to defend him and were quickly defeated. Amethyst and Pearl were next, neither of them had come close to reaching him before they were struck down by a blast of white. Garnet managed to avoid a few of the blasts, but was caught off guard when a bleached Pearl attacked. The white slowly leaked out from her gemstones before eventually engulfing her entire body, turning her into another mindless puppet.</p><p> </p><p>Spinel, apart from the other Diamonds, was the only gem left standing. She coiled her legs into springs which she used to jump towards him, scooping him off the ground and taking him back to Blue. He stood on Blue Diamond’s shoulder, a good distance away from White Diamond.</p><p> </p><p>“Release them, <em> now </em>,” Yellow Diamond ordered. “I—” The words caught in her throat as splotches of white spread out from her gemstone. She looked at White Diamond with a mix of shock and betrayal. The white spread out until it covered her entire body, Yellow watching helplessly as she lost control over herself.</p><p> </p><p>“White!” Blue Diamond shouted. “You need to stop, this is insanity!”</p><p> </p><p>White Diamond’s eyes were glowing, charging up for another attack, this one aimed at Blue Diamond. Thinking fast, Steven summoned his shield and flung it so it covered Blue Diamond’s gemstone. The blast of white bounced off it, hitting a wall instead. White Diamond attacked again, but Steven wasn’t fast enough and Blue Diamond was hit.</p><p> </p><p>“You’ve confused them, Pink,” White Diamond said. “Now, I’m forced to fix them, perfect them.” </p><p> </p><p>She charged up another attack, one aimed directly at him. Seeing what was about to happen, Spinel grabbed him and leapt away, landing somewhere on the ballroom floor. </p><p> </p><p>“Please listen to me,” he said. “I don’t want to fight you.”’</p><p> </p><p>White Diamond ignored him and attacked. He raised his shield, protecting both Spinel and himself from the attack. </p><p> </p><p>“Stop resisting, Pink. I only want what’s best for you.”</p><p> </p><p>He pointed in the direction of one of the mindless Diamonds. “How is<em> that </em> what’s best for me?”</p><p> </p><p>White Diamond answered with another blast of light. When it failed to reach him, she began to use the gems she had taken control over to launch an attack. Garnet swung at him, her gauntlets slamming against his shield. More and more gems joined the fight, each trying to distract him  long enough for White Diamond to land a hit on him.</p><p> </p><p>“Watch out!” Spinel cried as she pushed him away from a beam of light that came dangerously close to hitting him. White Diamond growled in annoyance and sent the gems to attack her instead. Spinel stretched her body in strange ways, easily evading the attacks of the possessed gems. She was greatly outnumbered, but she was small and evasive, making her difficult to hit.</p><p> </p><p>Even with the others focusing on Spinel, Steven was still greatly outmatched. How was he supposed to stop White Diamond when even the other Diamonds were unable to do so?  He ran, avoiding her attacks, and tried to think of a way to end the situation peacefully.</p><p> </p><p>“I don’t want to fight!” White Diamond attacked again and Steven raised his shield to defend, but this time he angled it so that the attack would be redirected at her. </p><p> </p><p>He stopped and faced her, saw her unhurt and furious, her eyes narrowing and nostrils flaring. He turned and continued running, thrusting his shield up every couple seconds to defend against her attacks. From the corner of his eye he saw Jasper charging at him, and he was only barely able to put a bubble up before she crashed into him at full force. The bubble went flying, bouncing against the walls before landing in the center of the room.</p><p> </p><p>While in the safety of his bubble he searched for Spinel, heart sinking when he realized she had turned white. He was all alone. “Why are you doing this?”</p><p> </p><p>“I’m maintaining order. I’m ensuring that our empire remains perfect.”</p><p> </p><p><em> Perfect </em>, there was that word again. White Diamond seemed obsessed with perfection, and Steven couldn’t understand why. All of her actions were only making things worse, hurting those who she was supposedly trying to help, so why couldn’t she see that?</p><p> </p><p>Steven ran adjacent to the wall, using the hanging banners displaying the Diamond insignia as temporary cover. Amethyst’s whip slashed at it, tossing it to the ground in shreds. He ran, and she chased after him, destroying countless more banners in her attempts to catch him. </p><p> </p><p>White Diamond began to use her hands, throwing two beams of light at a time. He kept evading and raising his shield, easily avoiding her attacks. What proved more difficult was fighting against the possessed gems. He didn’t want to risk hurting any of them, but at the same time he couldn’t afford to ignore them. They attacked mercilessly. Some, like Pearl, stuck him with actual weapons while the others shot beams of light at him from a safer distance. When he could, he redirected the blasts to the ground or to the walls, damaging them.</p><p> </p><p>Spinel, Lapis, and Garnet attacked him all at once, hoping to overwhelm him with sheer numbers. It probably would have worked too, if Lapis didn’t stop mid strike.  It was only a moment, but he saw it, White Diamond’s control had slipped, some blue seeping back into Lapis. Was there a limit to how many gems she could control? </p><p> </p><p>He was pulled out of his thoughts by Pearl’s spear whizzing past him. He continued to run, only stopping to deflect White Diamond’s never ending attacks. He summoned a bubble to protect himself as he stopped to collect his breath. The banners were all gone now, the walls were signed black with damage taken from White Diamond’s attacks, the marble floor was scratched up from his fights with the gems. In short, the room was a mess.</p><p> </p><p>He gestured to the disaster surrounding him, a disaster that White Diamond had caused. “Is<em> this </em>your idea of perfect?” he asked.</p><p> </p><p>White Diamond paused, her mask of indifference was beginning to crack. Only half of the bleached gems were attacking his bubble, the rest stood off to the side as color seeped out from their gem.</p><p> </p><p>“You don’t understand Pink. This is what I have to do. I’m supposed to set an example. I'm supposed to know better, I'm supposed to <em> be </em> better, I'm supposed to make <em> everything </em> better!”</p><p> </p><p>“And you can, but this…” he gestured to the gems struggling to regain control of themselves, their faces contorting in discomfort. “Isn’t the way to do it. Set everybody free and we can talk this out.”</p><p> </p><p>White Diamond shook her head, but she didn’t attack. She looked tired now, and the gems she was controlling reflected that. Their attacks had mostly stopped and any time they did strike it was half-hearted, lacking any real malice. “They’re flawed, off color,” she said as if that were enough explanation.</p><p> </p><p>“Nobody’s perfect, but if you just wipe away everything you see as flawed, you lose all the things that make you happy.”</p><p> </p><p>The gems stopped attacking. Steven cautiously lowered his bubble and walked over to White Diamond.</p><p> </p><p>“I <em> can't </em> have a flaw,” she insisted, looking down at her palms. “I'm supposed to be <em> flawless </em>. If I'm not perfect, then... who am I?”</p><p> </p><p>When he spoke it was soft and gentle, “You know, if you just let everyone be whoever they are, maybe you could let yourself be whoever you are too.”</p><p> </p><p>White Diamond’s face crumbled, exhaustion giving way to despair. She fell to her knees, her control over everyone disappearing.</p><hr/><p><em> Pain. </em> Even the slightest twitch resulted in searing agony.</p><p>Darkness, that’s all Twoie could see. Sometime in between shallow breaths, he realized his eyes were closed. He didn’t even try opening them, it would be too painful. He focused on his breathing instead, slowly filling his oxygen-starved lungs with air. That was a mistake. His body seized up, bucking and convulsing.</p><p>Someone gasped. “What’s happening to him? I healed him. He shou—”</p><p>“Peridot, the timepiece. We need to send him back.”</p><p>“Send him <em> back </em>? like this?”</p><p>“He can’t stay here any longer. It’s too dangerous.”</p><p>“Dangerous? What are you talking abo—”</p><p>Someone was screaming, drowning out everything else. It took him a while to realize the pained noise was coming from him. Everything hurt. It felt like someone had poured hot magma into his veins. He didn’t know how long he lay there writhing on the floor, but when unconsciousness finally came, he was glad.</p><p>He had trouble keeping track of time as he drifted in and out of consciousness, but time <em> did </em> pass. He knew because he was always somewhere else when he awoke. He still couldn’t muster up the strength to open his eyes, but he could <em> feel </em>the changes. One moment he was sprawled on the cold floor, only to be cradled in someone’s arms the next.</p><p>When he finally did wake, it was to find that he was cocooned by soft blankets and pillows. Sleep should have made him feel better, more energized, but he somehow managed to feel even more tired. He couldn’t even remember what had happened to make him feel this awful. He had been fighting someone, running away from them maybe? There had been a flash of white and then…</p><p>
  <em> “This is for the best, Starlight.” </em>
</p><p>His eyes shot open.</p><p>Everything was blurry. He didn’t give much thought as to whether he was staring up at a ceiling, sky, or something else entirely. All he knew is that he needed to run, and <em> fast </em>. With shaky arms, he began to try and push himself up.</p><p>“Try not to move.” His vision cleared. Pearl was leaned over him, her brow wrinkled.</p><p>He shot up, ignoring the waves of pain the action brought him. He was in Pink Diamond’s old room, resting on a bed with no signs of immediate danger. His heart raced anyway.</p><p>“White Diamond,” he said, eyes darting around the room. “Wher—”</p><p>“You’re safe.” Pearl placed a hand on his chest and forced him to lay back down. “She isn’t going to hurt you anymore.”</p><p><em> Anymore </em>. So, that hadn’t just been a dream. White Diamond really had taken control of him. He had broken free somehow, but how? Pearl probably knew the answer, but he was almost afraid to ask her. She was staring at him, her worried eyes shiny with unshed tears. He didn’t want to risk saying anything that would make her cry.</p><p>Something like a shudder ran through his body. Except, it lasted longer and was a hundred times more unpleasant. He squeezed his eyes shut, allowing the pain to wash over him and ignoring the slight tremble of his body. He counted the seconds.</p><p>
  <em> One… </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Two… </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Three… </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Four… </em>
</p><p>The pain stopped and his body stabilized. He opened his eyes, feeling even weaker than he had before, if that were even possible. Pearl rested a hand on his shoulder, possibly to steady him. He winced, his body tender. She pulled away immediately.</p><p>“I’m fine,” he answered reflexively before she could even ask. Even his voice sounded weak.</p><p>Pearl nodded, but he could tell that she didn’t believe him. Hell, he didn’t even believe himself. He was dying and they both knew it, only neither of them was willing to say it out loud.</p><p>“Peridot is working on the timepiece,” Pearl said. “She has help now, more resources. When she’s finished you’ll be able to go home.”</p><p>“More resources?” he questioned, avoiding the topic of the timepiece. Small tremors ran through his body, he ignored them.</p><p>“The Diamonds are helping in any way they can.”</p><p>“Even…”</p><p>“Yes,” Pearl answered before he could finish. “<em> All </em>the Diamonds.”</p><p><em> “How?” </em> The question left his mouth before he could stop it. With how angry White Diamond had been the last time he talked to her, he couldn’t imagine her willingly helping anybody. Had the other Diamonds convinced her somehow?</p><p>“Steven was able t—”</p><p>“He’s<em> here </em>?” A thousand scenarios unfolded before him in an instant, none of them good. Had White Diamond pulled Steven’s gem out? Done something worse?</p><p>She must have seen the terror on his face because she rushed to reassure him, “Steven’s safe. He’s with Jasper.”</p><p>“And White Diamond?” She hesitated. That was answer enough. “She’s with Steven, isn’t she?”</p><p>“Nobody forced him, he <em> wanted </em>to talk to White Diamond.”</p><p>Isn’t that how it had started with him? He had wanted to talk to the Diamonds at one point too, wanted to make things better, to bring peace to the galaxy. Before he knew it he wasn’t just talking to them. He was attending balls, filing reports, doing everything he could to keep them happy—keep them peaceful. Is that what Steven was doing now?</p><p>“He shouldn’t want that.” He stared down at his gloved hands. He was still in Pink Diamond’s outfit. “You shouldn’t let him.”</p><p>“I know,” she said, sounding remorseful. “I had a talk with Amethyst and Garnet, and we all agreed that Steven would only have limited contact with the Diamonds. We don’t want him taking on too many responsibilities. It’s best if he focused on being a kid.”</p><p>“Being a kid is good,” he agreed, yawning. His eyes were drooping and he found himself fighting sleep.</p><p>“Try and get some rest,” Pearl said. “Peridot will be finished soon.”</p><p>He hummed in agreement and allowed his eyes to close.</p><p>The next time he woke it was to the sight of someone looming over him. His heart leapt to his throat, only to calm when he realized it was Jasper. She was leaning against the wall near his bed watching him.</p><p>“You’re awake.”</p><p>“Yeah,” he said, yawning. He was still a bit drowsy. “I am.”</p><p>Jasper nodded. “Good.”</p><p>“She was real worried about you.” He blinked at the unexpected voice. Spinel was seated on a couch on the other side of the room. She stood and made her way over to him. “I practically had to peel her off of you.”</p><p>Jasper averted his gaze and almost looked embarrassed.</p><p>Without warning, he began to tremble and shake, jolts up pain running through his body. Five, it had lasted five seconds this time. Spinel’s smile had fallen and Jasper turned her worried gaze onto him.</p><p>“How’s Steven?” he asked, before they could ask him about his well-being. “Pearl told me he was with White Diamond.”</p><p>“And Yellow and Blue Diamond,” Spinel said. “They’re talking about some really important stuff. I didn’t understand a lot of it, something about dismantling the Diamond Authority.” She shrugged.</p><p>That caught him off guard, leaving him momentarily speechless. It had taken him <em> years </em> to get the Diamonds to agree to that, and Steven had done it in what couldn’t have been more than a few hours? He would have felt jealous if he weren’t so relieved.</p><p>“That’s… amazing,” he said, a genuine smile on his face. He wanted to talk to them more, ask them how they were handling everything, but his eyes close without him wanting them to.</p><p>Lapis was the only person in the room when he woke up the next time. She was oddly quiet, only sneaking glances at him.</p><p>“Are you going to stay here?” he asked, breaking the silence. She was finally back on Homeworld, but she looked even more miserable than she had while on earth.</p><p>“No,” she said. “I don’t think so. It’s funny, for the longest time all I could think about is coming back here. I thought if I could make it to Homeworld then everything would work itself out, but now that I’m here…” She sighed. “I don’t know.”</p><p>“It doesn’t feel right.”</p><p>She nodded. “Everything’s changed so much. I think I might stay on earth for a while, clear my head.”</p><p>“I’m sure Steven would be glad to show you around.”</p><p>She smiled. “That would be… nice.”</p><p>The door slid open and Lapis went over to sit on the couch. Peridot walked in, clutching something to her chest. She made her way over to him and placed something in his hands. “Here.”</p><p>“You fixed it,” he said, staring at the timepiece. A part of him hadn’t actually expected her to fix it in time. “What would happen if I used it?”</p><p>“I… don’t know,” Peridot admitted.</p><p>“Thank you,” he said after a beat of silence. It was a nice gesture even if it wasn’t guaranteed to send him home. He carefully placed it on his lap. He wouldn’t use it yet. “You should watch Camp Pining Hearts.”</p><p>She blinked. “What?”</p><p>“A TV show,” he explained. It dawned on him that he’d never introduced her to the show. It would feel wrong to not tell her about it. It was one of the things they first bonded over. “I think you’d like it.”</p><p>“I don’t get it,” she said, giving her head a small shake. “You’re nothing like a Diamond.”</p><p>He smiled. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”</p><p>“I never listened to you,” she continued. “I called you a clod, undermined your authority. You could have ordered me to help, but you didn’t. You were… nice. Why?”</p><p>He almost laughed. Is this what had been bothering Peridot? Was she afraid that he had some ulterior motive for being nice to her?</p><p>“You’re my friend,” he said. “I care about you, Peridot.”</p><p>“Oh,” she seemed at a loss for words. Then more quietly she added, “Thank you. I think… I care about you too.”</p><hr/><p>The next person to visit Twoie was Amethyst.</p><p>“How are you feeling, dude?” she asked, taking a seat on the bed.</p><p>“I’m fi—”</p><p>“And don’t say you’re fine.”</p><p>He opened his mouth, only to close it again. How <em> was </em>he feeling? Even with the fixed timepiece securely in his possession, he couldn’t shake the feeling of fear that loomed over him. Some deep part of him felt certain that he would die, but he didn’t want to say that. Instead he shrugged and said, “Tired.” It was true enough. “How is everyone?”</p><p>“They’re fine,” Amethyst said. “You don’t need to worry about them. Focus on yourself for once.”</p><p>His body spasmed before he could form a reply. He had been in too much pain to count the seconds that time.</p><p>“Are you okay?” Amethyst asked.</p><p>He flashed her strained smile that came out more like a grimace. “I’m fin—”</p><p>“Stop saying that!” She was taking deep breaths as if to calm herself. It was strange considering gems didn’t need to breathe.</p><p>“Amethyst?”</p><p>“You keep saying you’re fine, acting like nothing’s wrong when…” She rubbed at her eyes furiously as a few stray tears leaked out.</p><p>He placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. “I’m sorry.”</p><p>She shook her head, tugging at a fistful of her hair. “Argh! Now <em> I’m </em> doing it.”</p><p>He blinked. “Doing… what?”</p><p>“Dumping my issues on you,” she said, voice soft. “You’re the one who should be upset, not me. I should be comforting you.”</p><p>His heart warmed and for a fleeting moment it felt like he was talking to <em> his </em> Amethyst, the one he’d left behind in the future. When he smiled this time, it wasn’t forced. “You really <em> are </em>the most mature Crystal Gem.”</p><p>Amethyst eyes widened. She barked out a laugh. She went quiet before she spoke again, “I’ll make sure Steven has the best childhood ever. We’re going to break all the rules.”</p><p>He chuckled. He could almost imagine it, Pearl squawking in the background while he and Amethyst made a mess of the house. Staying up all night playing video, eating junk food, and zero responsibilities. It sounded like a dream come true.</p><p>They talked for a bit longer. Thankfully, Amethyst avoided any heavy topics like the Diamonds or the timepiece. It was nice and for a while he could pretend everything really was fine. Amethyst left some time after, promising to send someone else to watch over him.</p><p>Twoie stared at the timepiece, turning it around in his hands a few times before putting it down. He could stay in the past if he wanted. He wouldn’t last very long and it would be painful, but he could do it. If he stayed, he would be able to help with the Diamonds, the cluster, the construction of Little Homeworld, healing the corrupted gems. He could also choose to go home. That is, if there even was a home for him to go back to. Would his choice even matter? or would he die no matter what he did?</p><p>“I’m sorry.”</p><p>Twoie looked up, startled from his thoughts. He hadn’t even noticed Garnet walking in. She sat down at the edge of the bed, her gaze fixed on some random spot of the floor. He did his best to smile even though she wasn’t looking. “You didn’t do anything wrong.”</p><p>“I didn’t protect you.”</p><p>He shook his head, wincing slightly as the action aggravated his head ache. “I was the one who ran off to Homeworld without telling anyone. If anything<em> I </em>should be apologizing to you. I didn’t mean to cause you guys so much trouble.”</p><p>He hoped his words would calm her, but they seemed to have the opposite effect. Garnet clenched her jaw and took a moment to collect herself before speaking, “That’s not what I meant.” She looked at him, her gaze managing to be intense even through her visor. “You were forced to sacrifice so much, even now my future vision is telling me there’s a possibility you will choose to stay in the past.” He flushed at the truth in her words and averted his gaze. “We should have… <em> I </em>should have protected you more. You were only a child. You shouldn’t have gone through any of that.”</p><p>“Oh,” he said softly. “<em> that </em>.”</p><p>“I’m sorry,” she repeated.</p><p>Twoie sighed, exhaustion seeping into his bones. “I’m not going to lie, it sucked. Growing up I was always trying to live up to mom’s memory, prove that I was worthy of being a Crystal Gem. I helped stop the cluster, changed the Diamonds for the better, healed the corrupted gems. There was always <em> something.” </em> He shrugged. <em> “ </em> I kind of got used to it. <em> ” </em> He saw Garnet flinch at his words. <em> “ </em>I don’t really blame you for what happened, not anymore. You did the best you could even if you didn’t always know how to raise a kid.” A part of him wanted to say more, explain in detail just how awful his life had been at times, but he felt too tired and chose to keep silent instead.</p><p>“I could have done more.”</p><p>“Maybe,” he conceded. “but that doesn’t matter anymore, not for me at least.”</p><p>“You can still go home.”</p><p>“<em> Can </em>I? Would it even work?”</p><p>Garnet didn’t say anything after that. Either she didn’t know the answer or she couldn’t bring herself to tell him. Wordlessly, she got up and left.</p><p>A short while after, the doors unlocked and slid open, bringing in a flood of gems. Lapis, Peridot, Spinel, Jasper, and the rest of the Crystal Gems walked in. A mop of black hair caught his attention. Whatever meeting he had with the Diamonds must have finally ended, because Steven was here. A part of him was relieved to see that he was dressed in his iconic red shirt and jeans. Despite the others reassurances that Steven wasn’t being forced to entertain the Diamonds, he still feared that he would show up dressed as Pink Diamond.</p><p>Steven pushed past the crowd until he was standing right in front of him.</p><p>“Is it true?” he asked, his face etched with worry.</p><p>He could only give him a quizzical look in response.</p><p>“Garnet told me that you didn’t want to leave even if…”</p><p>“I don’t know,” he admitted. “I could stay, if I wanted. We could hang out and I could hel—”</p><p>“No!” he shouted, then realizing how it sounded rushed to explain himself, “I mean, you should go home. If you stay here too long then… then you’ll…”</p><p>He felt a sharp stab of guilt at the sight of his teary face. The faces of the rest of his loved ones were hopeful, pleading. He turned the timepiece around in his hands and sighed. It wouldn’t be right to stay in the past and force them to watch him disappear, watch him die. He gripped the timepiece, he had made up his mind.</p><p>“I’m going home,” he announced loud enough for everyone to hear. Steven tackled him into a hug. It hurt, but he smiled through the pain. “I’m going home,” he repeated even though he didn’t quite believe himself.</p><p>Amethyst joined in on the hug, quickly followed by Pearl and Garnet. Soon, everybody was embracing him. Lapis, Peridot, Spinel, even Jasper had joined in on the hug. It was only when his body started to glitch that they let go. Well, everybody except for Steven. He clung to him like his life depended on it.</p><p>“Steven,” he said gently. “You have to let go.”</p><p>“Oh, right,” he said.</p><p>He didn’t let go.</p><p>He allowed the hug to go on for a bit longer before gently prying Steven off of him. Pearl pulled Steven back before he could latch onto him again. Her face was teary, most of their faces were. He contemplated whether he should say something, give some grand speech maybe, but he found that his throat had closed up. No, even if he could speak there was nothing he could say that would make this easier. So, instead he gave them the most heartfelt smile he could muster, hoping that would convey all his feelings. It still didn’t quite feel like enough, but it was all he could do.</p><p>He willed the timepiece to send him back home. Light slowly engulfed his entire body. He couldn’t feel any of his limbs anymore, but he wasn’t scared. He felt almost peaceful, the aches and pains that had been plaguing him for so long finally disappearing.</p><p>Then, in a flash of light, he was gone.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0028"><h2>28. Epilogue</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>The world turned on its head, spinning and twirling at a breakneck speed. Twoie threw his arms out in front of him, grasping at the air in an attempt to reorient himself, but it was hopeless. He was surrounded by darkness, stuck in a cold and empty void with no hope of ever escaping. Was this his punishment for interfering with the flow of time? </span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>It’s not fair</span>
  </em>
  <span>, he thought bitterly. Then again, when had anything in his life ever been fair? Something in between a laugh and a sob spilled out of him, but it was muffled by the oppressive shadows surrounding him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The world spun again, and his stomach churned. When the spinning stopped, he was able to make out a faint speck of light far out in the distance. It could have been nothing, or it could have been his ticket out of this place. It didn’t matter, because he was heading towards it anyway.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The trip was slow and arduous, the darkness stubbornly restraining his movements, but he soldiered onward. Not that he had many other options. The speck soon became an orb and, eventually, a small portal. He reached out, the tips of his fingers just barely brushing against the light.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His foot found air, and his face found sand. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie skidded across the ground, staining his clothes and bruising his side, as he popped back into existence. He sat up, spitting out mouthfuls of sand, and choking out barrels of relieved laughter. He took in lungfuls of fresh air, immensely grateful for every gust of wind and grain of sand. A quick scan of his surroundings revealed he was at the center of a large crater, the moon and stars his only source of light.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The timepiece lay on his lap, a large crack running across its surface. He pocketed the damaged artifact, deciding it wasn’t a priority at the moment, and focused instead on climbing out of the sandy pit. It was surprisingly easy. There were no aches or jolts of pain that accompanied his every step, no constant throbbing headaches, and best of all--he felt energized, </span>
  <em>
    <span>alive</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Once out, the recognizable sandy shore of a beach became visible. He’d been thinking of home when he activated the timepiece, but couldn’t see the beach house anywhere. Dread settled into the pit of his stomach, but he kept walking, speeding up every second he failed to find home. Just when he was beginning to give up hope, he saw it. The statue of Obsidian, far out in the distance, watching over the beach.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie took off into a run, heart pounding in his ears as he bolted toward the statue. He could make out the dome of the newly constructed green house and the wooden balcony leading to his room.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>There was no doubt about it, he was back home.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>With a single jump, he leapt over the stairs and flung the door open, his blood running cold at the sight that greeted him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It looked like a tornado had made its way through the living room, hurling books and paper in every direction. The kitchen was no better, flies swarmed around a rotten bowl of fruit, and Twoie gagged at the putrid smell. A flick of a switch revealed that the lightbulbs were dead, faint sparks of light brightened the room before snuffing out. A fine layer of dust covered every surface. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The house was abandoned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Guys?” He paused, waiting for a response, but none came. “Pearl? Amethyst? Garnet?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He made his way over to the familiar temple door, rapping his knuckles against its cold surface. Again, no response. Using his gemstone, he entered the temple, searching each room until he was certain nobody was around. He moved on to searching the house next, leaving no cupboard or closet unchecked. He found nothing.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Slightly panicking now, Twoie pulled his phone out of his pocket with the intent of calling one of the gems, but he ended up staring at his screen instead. He had </span>
  <em>
    <span>thousands</span>
  </em>
  <span> of missed calls and texts. His phone nearly crashed trying to load them all at once.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He managed to read a text as it flashed on screen, </span>
  <em>
    <span>Where are you?</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Is everything okay?, </span>
  </em>
  <span>another text read.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Text after text flashed on his screen, faster than he could read them, each message becoming more worried as time went on.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Call me back.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>This isn’t funny.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Please come home.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>He stared incomprehensibly at the steady stream of messages, and attempted to wrap his head around the situation. He had assumed that he would be sent back to the moment right after he left, that no one would even notice his absence, but the truth was slowly starting to dawn on him. For all those days, all those weeks he had spent in the past, he had also been missing from his time.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh no…” Guilt hit him like a truck at the realization. The gems, Dad, Connie, they all must have been worried sick about him. Were they out there right now, searching for him? He wasted no time and pulled up the long list of missed calls, tapping on the most recent one without even looking</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His pulse raced, as he waited for someone to pick up. There was a crackle on the other end immediately followed by a gruff voice, “Where are you?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie’s mind blanked, and any response he had immediately died in his throat. It was Jasper. He had been expecting Dad, Connie, or one of the gems to pick up. Hell, he wouldn’t have even been that surprised if it had been Peridot, Bismuth, or Lapis who answered, but </span>
  <em>
    <span>Jasper</span>
  </em>
  <span>? He didn’t even know she </span>
  <em>
    <span>had </span>
  </em>
  <span>a phone, let alone his number. Last he checked, she was still throwing boulders in the woods and refusing to attend Little Homeschool.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Steven?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I… Jasper?” he answered, fumbling to find the right words. “Wha—how are you even calling me?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“With a phone.” If he didn’t know any better he’d say she was teasing him. “Where are you?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Home… I think.” he scanned the house, half expecting Steven to pop up behind some counter. Was he still in the past somehow? No, the kitchen had clearly been remodeled, and the staircase leading to his room was visible even in the dark. “What’s going on? Where is everybody?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>There was another crackle, and the call ended. Confused, he attempted to call Jasper again, only to be greeted by a flashing battery icon. “Of course,” he mumbled, pocketing his dead phone.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie went up to his room, pulling open drawers as he searched for a charger. As he rifled through his clothes, a feeling of unease was starting to make itself known. Something was missing. More specifically, all of his Pink Diamond outfits were gone. He hastily plugged in his phone to charge, and continued to search through his clothes, but found nothing. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Unsettled, he began to carefully comb through his room. At a glance, everything was just as he remembered it. Several familiar posters lined the walls, an array of knick-knacks sat on a shelf above his bed, the painting of him and Garnet hung on a nearby wall. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Still, he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off. The posters were hung in different places, the Garnet in the painting held a different pose than the one he remembered, he didn’t recognize a few of the knick-knacks. Small changes, but changes nonetheless.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Before he could investigate any further, the door to his room was flung open. He turned, shield already raised in preparation of a fight, but was left gaping at the figure standing in the doorway. Jasper’s face was scrunched up in an uncharacteristic expression of worry, but what had surprised him more was her lack of corruption scars. Her small horns and spots had vanished, no trace that anything had ever been there.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Where have you been?” The relief in her voice caught him off guard, and he was left floundering for an answer. She must have taken his confusion for fear, because her face softened as she asked, “Are you okay?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I… Why do you care?” It was an honest question, lacking any malice, but Jasper flinched as if he’d struck her. He immediately hurried to explain himself, “I thought I was a ‘puny human’. Isn’t that what you said before our fight?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, I—” Jasper frowned, eyebrows furrowing. “... Our fight?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie lowered his shield, dissipating its form. Jasper had never been one for deception, and her confusion was too genuine to be an act. No, if she was here to start a fight she would have done it already. “You don’t remember?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jasper shook her head, and took a few tentative steps towards him. She stopped when he took a step back, eyeing him as she asked, “Are you hurt?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He suddenly became aware of how unstable he must have looked. He appeared out of nowhere after being missing for weeks, covered in sand and dirt, babbling about events only he could remember. It was no wonder Jasper was approaching him like he was some feral animal. “I’m fine.” He flashed her a strained smile, and took a seat on the edge of his bed. “Just… confused.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jasper nodded, and slowly began to make her way over to him, pausing every few moments to observe his reactions. She sat next to him, the bed dipping under the added weight. She left him with enough room that he didn’t feel smothered by her presence, but was close enough where she could reach out and touch him if she wanted.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You sure you’re okay?” she asked after a beat of silence. Again, her voice was laced with an unusual amount of worry.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I fine—”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His head spun, and suddenly he wasn’t in his room anymore. </span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>He was seated on a fallen tree, a campfire in front of him, and Jasper seated across from him. She fumbled with a stick, glaring at a marshmallow as she skewered it. </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I won,” she smugly announced, puffing her chest out in victory. “I defeated the earthling.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Laughter bubbled out of him without him willing it. </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>He wasn’t in control of himself as he spoke, “That ‘earthling’ you just defeated is called a marshmallow, and you’re supposed to eat them not fight them.” He held his own marshmallow above the fire, waiting for it to turn a golden brown before taking a bite. “See?” he said, his voice muffled by the gooey treat. “It’s tasty.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Jasper glanced down at her own marshmallow, eyeing it suspiciously before taking a tentative bite. </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“This is…” Her eyes brightened as she continued to chew. </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Tasty?” he offered, smiling at her excitement.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>She nodded, and ate the rest of the marshmallow in a single bite.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie blinked, the memory fading as he was thrust back into his bedroom. Jasper was still seated next to him, but her presence didn’t bother him like it had a few moments ago. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Jasper,” he spoke, breaking the silence. “We went camping together, right?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She looked confused at the question, but gave a nod in response. “Almost every month.” Her face softened, a small smile gracing her lips.  “I like it, it’s… fun.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Their conversation was interrupted by the activating of the warp pad.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jasper rose from the bed. “That should be the others.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The others?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The other gems,” she clarified before making her way downstairs.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie immediately followed after her, nearly tripping in his rush to get to the living room. His mouth fell agape at the three figures standing on the warp pad. </span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>His </span>
  </em>
  <span>Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl had arrived. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He almost couldn’t believe it. How long had it been since he’d last seen them? And now they were separated by a matter of several feet. A few steps was all it would take to close the distance, but he found himself unable to move, shock keeping him rooted to his spot.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He could only watch, heart thudding in his chest, as they approached him. They stopped in front of him, and stared, drinking in his image as if they feared he would disappear in the next second.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Guys, I…” What was he even supposed to say? Apologize for going missing? Try to explain that he had been stuck in the past? It didn’t matter, because they engulfed him in a hug, cutting off any explanation he would’ve given.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thank the stars, you’re okay!” Pearl gasped out in between her relieved sobs. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Amethyst let out a shaky laugh. “Please let this be real. I swear, if this is another dream…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s real.” Garnet’s voice was shaky and thick with emotion. “It’s real, it’s real,” she repeated the words like a mantra, her body trembling as she squeezed all of them in a hug.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His thoughts were a jumbled mess. Tears welled up in his eyes, slowly leaking out of him. He tried to speak, but his throat had closed up and all that came out was a strangled sob. He clung to them with all his strength, afraid they would disappear if he let go.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They stood there embracing each other, tears streaming down their faces for what felt like an eternity. At some point, Garnet untangled herself from the embrace and went over to Jasper. They spoke in low tones and hushed whispers, occasionally stealing glances over to him, but he was too exhausted to even care. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Pearl and Amethyst, without breaking the embrace, gently moved him over to the couch. Twoie sat in between them, shaking like a leaf in the wind, as he tried to convince himself he wasn’t dreaming.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>The next time Twoie woke, it was to the smell of coffee and bacon. He sat up, yawning and rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. He was in a state of hazy bliss, unconcerned with anything, purely existing in the moment. That all ended when the door to his bedroom creaked open.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Dad trudged inside, looking older than he remembered him. Faint creases marred his haggard face, his shoulders slumped and weighed down by stress. Twoie straightened up, the remaining tendrils of sleep disappearing from his foggy mind.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>At the sight of Twoie, his eyes bulged and his mouth fell agape, making him look like a fish out of water. “Steven!” He rushed over and wrapped his arms around him in an almost crushing embrace. “You’re awake!” He cried, his voice equal parts teary and relieved. “You’re okay!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The world around him disappeared, as he was transported into a distant memory.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Steven sat next to dad on the porch of the house, watching the sun as it began to set, idly strumming at his ukulele. There was a tenseness in his muscles as he shifted positions, somehow failing to get any more comfortable. He was restless.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“This sucks.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Dad let out a strained chuckle.“Is spending time with your old man really that bad?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>His eyes widened in horror, as he realized how he must have sounded. “What? No! That’s not it! You know I love spending time with you….”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“But?” Dad pressed. He set his guitar down to the side, and patiently waited for him to respond.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“It’s just…” Steven averted his gaze and stared out into the distance. “I wish the gems would let me go to Homeworld.” </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Well,” he began, pausing to collect his thoughts. “I don’t know much about Homeworld or their society, but from what I’ve heard it’s not exactly somewhere safe. The gems are just trying to keep you safe, kiddo.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>He sighed, and in a much softer voice responded, “I know, but I can’t help but feel like I’m letting them down somehow. I’m Pink Diamond, right? So shouldn’t it be my responsibility to deal with the other Diamonds?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Schtuball,” his voice was surprisingly firm as he spoke, “You’re not Pink Diamond. All that stuff with the Diamonds had nothing to do with you.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“But—”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“But, nothing,” he said. “I understand that you want to help, but this isn’t your responsibility.” Steven’s shoulders slumped in defeat, and he went silent. Dad pulled him into a hug. “The gems are made of tough stuff, they can handle a few meetings with the Diamonds.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>He nodded, feeling slightly better, but he couldn’t help but wonder, what would Twoie do if he were in his place?</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie blinked, head spinning as he was thrust back into the present, his dad still embracing him. He had questions, dozens of them, but he doubted Dad would know any of the answers. Instead, he hugged Dad back, savoring the moment.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Dad pulled back after a few more seconds, wiping at his teary eyes, as he asked, “Where have you been? We looked </span>
  <em>
    <span>everywhere</span>
  </em>
  <span> for you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I was… here.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Here? At the house?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie nodded, still reeling from the new memory. Everything was so different, but at the same time strangely familiar.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We shouldn’t have abandoned the house,” Dad said, frowning. “If someone had been here then maybe we wou—”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It wouldn’t have mattered. I wasn’t at </span>
  <em>
    <span>this </span>
  </em>
  <span>version of the house.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“‘This version’ of the house?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I didn’t even have my own bed. I was sleeping in mom’s old room, and the gems didn’t like me very much at first. They thought I was a Homeworld spy.” He chuckled, all too aware of how unstable he must have sounded. “</span>
  <em>
    <span>Me, </span>
  </em>
  <span>of all people. Can you believe that?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t… is this gem related?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It doesn’t matter anymore,” he said, pulling his dad in for another hug. “I’m finally home.”</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>After a quick shower and change of clothes, Twoie was treated to the most extravagant breakfast of his life. Heaps and heaps of steaming food, more than he was even capable of eating, was laid out on the kitchen table. Pancakes, french toast, eggs, bacon, hash browns, and every other food even loosely associated with breakfast was being served by an ecstatic Pearl.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Help yourself to anything you’d like.” Pearl piled more pancakes onto his already comically tall stack. “A growing boy needs to eat.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No growing boy can eat </span>
  <em>
    <span>that</span>
  </em>
  <span> much.” Dad was seated next to him, eating a reasonable portion of pancakes. He eyed his stack of food with a mix of awe and amusement. “Don’t eat so much you get sick, kiddo.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Amethyst will eat whatever you don’t finish.” Garnet sat in between Dad and Amethyst, a small plate of diced fruit in front of her. Amethyst uttered something that sounded like agreement, her words muffled by the food stuffed in her mouth. “Pearl was…  excited to make you breakfast.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Pearl sat down with them after tidying up the kitchen. “I’ll admit, I may have gone a bit overboard with breakfast.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Amethyst snorted, shoveling another plateful of bacon into her mouth. “A bit? P, you only stopped cooking ‘cause you ran out of ingredients.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Pearl flushed blue, but didn’t refute Amethysts claim.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie smiled. “The food is delicious, Pearl. I haven’t had a proper breakfast since… In a while. Thank you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Pearl returned his smile, but dimmed at the mention of his absence. In fact, everyone at the table seemed to deflate at his words.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You were missing for months,” Garnet said, her tone somber. “No one had any idea of where you went.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie placed his fork down, suddenly losing his appetite. Garnet and, by the looks of their poorly concealed worry, everyone else at the table wanted to know where he had been. They deserved to know, but he wasn’t ready to relive what had happened. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Where’s Jasper?” he asked, changing the subject. The incident with White Diamond and his near death was still fresh in his mind, and he didn’t trust himself to talk about it without breaking down, something which would only worry the gems and Dad even more.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“She’s helping Peridot and the others finish with the preparations,” Garnet eventually said.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Preparations? For what?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Garnet froze, going silent.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Dad flashed Garnet a reassuring smile, before turning to address him. “We were going to keep it a surprise, but—”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’re throwing you a party!” Amethyst happily announced. “The Diamonds wanted to throw you a lame Homeworld ball, but we—”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie nearly choked on his orange juice, because how could he have forgotten about the Diamonds?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Woah, slow down there, dude,” Amethyst said, getting up to pat his back. “Wouldn’t want you to drown in juice.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The Diamonds,” he coughed out, shrugging off Amethyst's attempts to help. He stood, making his way over to the warp pad. Pearl stepped in front of him, blocking his path.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’ve already told them that we found you,” Pearl said. “Sit down, finish eating.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I can’t, I need t—”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You can call them later if you’d like, but I’m not comfortable with you warping anywhere right now, </span>
  <em>
    <span>especially</span>
  </em>
  <span> not to Homeworld.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“But, I—”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Dude, relax,” Amethyst said. “It’s not like the Diamonds are going anywhere.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>What?</span>
  </em>
  <span> Was she serious? He had left the Diamonds unattended for weeks, </span>
  <em>
    <span>months</span>
  </em>
  <span>, and no one seemed concerned. Why weren’t they freaking out?  He attempted to push past Pearl, but she stood firm. It was then when another memory resurfaced.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>A screen in the shape of a diamond floated in front of Steven, the faces of three women staring back at him. The largest of the three, and the one taking up most of the screen, smiled brightly at him.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Pink!” White Diamond greeted. “It’s so good to see you.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Beside him, Garnet cleared her throat. She placed a protective hand on his shoulder, ready to pull him away from the call at a moment's notice. “His name is Steven.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>White Diamond’s smile flickered for a moment. “Steven,” she began again. “It’s so good to finally speak with you. You really should visit more often, Starlight.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“White, we’ve talked about this,” Yellow Diamond said, an undercurrent of annoyance in her voice. “Steven will visit when he feels up to it.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Yes, of course,” White agreed. “I wasn’t pressuring Pink—”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Steven,” Blue Diamond corrected. “Not Pink, Steven.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Steven,” White Diamond repeated. “I wasn’t pressuring Steven to do anything. I was merely extending him an invitation to Homeworld.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>The memory ended, and he was left with a sense of calm of the situation. The Diamonds were under control. They still wanted him around, White especially, but they wouldn’t do anything drastic if he didn’t monitor them twenty-four seven. The realization left him reeling, as he practically collapsed into the nearest chair.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t </span>
  <em>
    <span>have </span>
  </em>
  <span>to go to Homeworld,” he said, as if to convince himself. The gems and dad gathered around him, sharing concerned looks. “That’s… wow.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Are you feeling alright, Schtuball?” Dad asked, his brow creasing in worry. “Maybe you should go rest.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie shook his head. The events of the past few hours finally clicked into place. The changes to his room, Jasper’s friendly demeanor, the flashes of memory, everything was starting to make sense.</span>
</p><p>
  <span> “I… do you guys remember Twoie?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The sound of a pin dropping could be heard in the silence that followed. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Your outfit last night…” Pearl muttered, realization dawning on her features.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The other version of the house,” Dad said, eyes wide. “You were talking about the past, weren’t you?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He nodded. “I got back last night.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s… I… ” Garnet struggled to speak, and eventually trailed off into silence.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Does that mean you’re not Steven?” Amethyst asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes, no—I… don’t know.” Conflicting memories of the same events flooded his mind. He remembered stopping the cluster, </span>
  <em>
    <span>and</span>
  </em>
  <span> the Diamonds willingly deactivating it. He recalled meeting Jasper </span>
  <em>
    <span>twice</span>
  </em>
  <span>, once as an enemy, and once as a friend. Was he Twoie with Steven’s memories, or Steven with Twoie’s memories? Already, it was becoming impossible to tell the difference. “I think…  I’m both.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Amethyst frowned, eyebrows squishing together. “Both?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I keep having these… flashes, like memories, except they’re of this timeline.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Pearl embraced him. “I’m just glad you’re okay.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’ll fill you in on anything you don’t remember,” Garnet assured him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Amethyst let out a small relieved laugh. “For a second there, I was worried you’d gone crazy. I mean, </span>
  <em>
    <span>willingly</span>
  </em>
  <span> wanting to visit the Diamonds?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He cracked a smile, and the remaining tension evaporated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Breakfast continued without a hitch, although Twoie would occasionally find himself slipping into a daze as a new memory resurfaced. He wouldn’t have minded much if the memories didn’t return while he was in the middle of a conversation.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“...what do you think, Steven?” Dad placed a hand on his shoulder. “Steven?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Twoie searched the room for Steven, realizing shortly after that Dad had been referring to him. He’d gotten so used to Twoie that being called by his real name almost felt wrong.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sorry, I zoned out.” He flashed him a sheepish grin. “What were you saying?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I wanted to know if you wanted to go through with the party. You must be tired after…  Well, everything.  Nobody would blame you if you wanted to postpone it. It’s your choice, so what do you say?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The gems and dad stared at him expectantly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The memories would come with time, he decided. Right now, all he wanted to do was spend time with his family. A gentle smile stretched across Steven’s face. “A party sounds… perfect.”</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0029"><h2>29. Whumptober (Bad Ending)</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Just a little something I wrote for whumptober.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>The moon takes its place amongst the starry sky, and Twoie does his best to commit the sight to memory. It's the little things he's going to miss the most. Nights like these with the lively chatter of his loved ones surrounding him, their laughter tinkling like bells.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Amethyst gives him a playful punch as greeting, and he does his best not to wince. Everything hurts nowadays. "Man, you can see the stars so clearly out here," she says, taking a moment to soak in the view. She looks at him, and he can see the concern flashing across the surface of her eyes. He hasn't spoken much tonight, his mind elsewhere. "It's pretty, huh?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Yeah," he agrees after a pause. He can tell she wants him to say more, break him out of his melancholic silence, but his mind blanks and his throat closes up. He shuffles back into the barn, ignoring the worried pair of eyes that seem to bore into the back of his head.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It's a little later when Pearl, Garnet, and Amethyst approach him. Hesitant glances are exchanged, a silent conversation, as they decide who will be the one to talk to him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"It's late," Garnet eventually says, her voice as collected and steady as always. It's comforting in a way, makes it easier for him to pretend it's just an ordinary night. "You should take a break, try to sleep."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He can almost feel Pearl's eyes on him as her gaze flits to the dark circles under his eyes, ones that only seem to be getting worse with time. He can see the way that Amethyst's body tenses as she waits for his response, ready to refute whatever excuses he comes up with to work on the drill for just a little bit longer.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span> For once, he doesn't fight them, smiles, and nods in agreement. Even Garnet struggles to hide the surprise on her face at his compliance, they had been expecting him to put up a fight, but he's far too tired for that.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He struggles to keep his voice from cracking, as he goes around the barn giving out goodbyes and heartfelt hugs to anyone who would let him. If they notice the tears in his eyes, or the small tremble of his hands, they don't mention it, too relieved at finally getting him to take a break.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I'll be making pancakes tomorrow," Pearl tells him, smiling. "I know they're your favorite." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He doesn't have the heart to tell her that he doesn't like pancakes anymore (he hasn't for a while now). Instead, he envelops her in another hug and mutters a few words of gratitude. He wants to say more, so much more, but he forces himself to stay quiet. He knows if he starts talking now, words will spill out of him, an unending stream of teary confessions and fears, and he will be unable to stop.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He doesn't glance back as he leaves the barn, afraid of losing his resolve if he catches a glimpse of the love shining in his family's eyes.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Save for the quiet snores of Steven, the beach house is silent when Twoie arrives. He stares at Steven's sleeping form for a moment, cracking a small smile at the way his mop of curly hair seems to defy gravity by sticking up in every which direction.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>I'm doing this for him</span>
  </em>
  <span>, he reminds himself.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He places a letter with the name 'STEVEN' scrawled in large black letters on the coffee table before heading out to the sandy shores of the beach. The letter won't be read until morning, and by then it will be too late. A part of him wonders if they'll hate him for what he's doing, resent him for doing what has to be done. He doesn't dwell on it for long, the time for second thoughts has long since passed.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Getting a ride to Homeworld proves as easy as flashing his gemstone to an incredulous Yellow Diamond. After that it's simply a matter of waiting for the patrolling ship to come get him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The squad of Ruby's who come to greet him trip over themselves to make him comfortable, praising his every action and fighting for his attention. He winces every time they refer to him as Pink Diamond, but doesn't bother to correct them.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>The room is a blinding white, and he finds himself having to cover his eyes while he adjusts to the all encompassing light. He can hear the way his heart pounds against his chest, the way blood rushes in his ears, and the way his breath hitches when the cold eyes of White Diamond finally land on him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He pleads with her, falls to his knees and </span>
  <em>
    <span>begs</span>
  </em>
  <span> her to understand. Pink Diamond is gone, he's not her. If any of his words are getting through to her, it's impossible to tell. Her face is a stone wall, completely impassive as she peers down at him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>When she finally does speak, it's to chide him about his 'improper behavior' and 'ridiculous delusions'.  She doesn't believe him, and even though he had been expecting it, his heart still drops like a stone to the pit of his stomach—because he knows, knows that there is only one way to convince someone like White Diamond.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He pushes himself off the floor, his legs wobbling under the weight of his fear, and with shaky hands lifts the hem of his shirt up, the pink gemstone embedded in his navel shimmering with life.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I can prove it," he says, his voice sounding more confident than how he feels. He traces the skin that borders his gemstone with his fingers, ignoring the way his stomach churns in protest, and tries his best not to cry out as he tugs. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>For a moment, there is nothing but a blinding hot pain, the rest of the world vanishing as his gemstone desperately clings onto his body. He wants to stop, but with his gemstone already halfway out, it's far too late.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>White Diamond watches on, making no move to stop him, and with no trace of concern on her face. She doesn't care what happens to his human half, her gaze firmly glued to his gemstone.</span>
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <span>Tendrils of black appear at the edges of his vision, and he knows he's about to lose consciousness, but he continues to pull. The last thing he wants is for White Diamond to finish the job for him. It's the memory of her cruel eyes and black nails that gives him the strength he needs for one final tug. With a sickening </span>
  <em>
    <span>pop</span>
  </em>
  <span> his gemstone finally comes free.</span>
</p>
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